How to Stay on Task and Actually Finish Your Novel
Benji Russell
NovelPad Author
Tell me if this sounds familiar:
You love to write, and you’re always coming up with new story ideas. Your WIP folder is crammed with character pages, world-building resources, and chapters one, two, and three of new novels. But you never seem to finish the book you’re working on—new projects crop up before you ever get to the end.
We’re going to cover tricks on how to stay on task and produce quality writing in a timely manner.
Tips for Staying on Task While Writing
If you’re anything like me, you find it difficult to stay on task while you’re writing. I tend to sit down with the good intention of getting words on the page, but before I know it, I’m on Twitter.$ $
Luckily, there are ways to set ourselves up for a successful writing session.
1. Create a writing routine
A writing routine trains your brain to know when it’s writing time. Following a routine can make it easier for that inspiration switch to turn on—you don’t have to wait for a muse if your brain can automatically switch to writing mode.
You need two things to create a writing routine: time and space.
First, block out consistent, regular time to write. You may not have time to write every day, and that’s okay! You want your routine to work for you so that you’ll be able to stick with it—otherwise, there’s no point.
If all you have is Thursday and Saturday evenings, that’s a great start. If you have mornings free, that works, too. Pick a part of your day where you can schedule writing time and pencil it into your schedule. Think of it as a recurring writing appointment!
NovelPad’s goal tracker with scheduled days.
Second, you’ll need a writing space. If you have a quiet office or living room to work from, awesome! If not, find a place that works for you. If your in-person workplace is the only place you can find quiet, maybe you stay late to write. If your bedroom is the only place you feel comfortable, clear a writing corner.
2. Have a writing ritual
When you have a writing routine that works for you, use writing rituals to make it stick.
A ritual can look however you want it to. The idea is to include things you love and will keep doing.
Here are examples of rituals you can incorporate into your writing routine:
- Getting a cozy beverage to keep you company
- Changing into comfy clothes
- Listening to a writing playlist or studying music
- Going for a walk before sitting down to write
- Munching a special snack
- Lighting scented candles or using oil diffusers
- Meditating before and after your writing session
Creating a ritual around writing will help you access "writer mode" at will, because you’ll have trained your brain and body for it.
3. Find writing buddies or accountability partners
If you can find a writing group in-person or an IRL pal to share your work with, go for it. If not, head on over to the social media platform of your choice, and I promise there will be approximately six trillion other writers just as excited to talk about writing as you.
If you don’t love the idea of having writing partners, you can also ask a friend or a significant other to be your accountability buddy.
Writing can be lonely work, and having someone in your life who’s excited to read what you’re creating can keep you excited to write.
4. Use website blockers or timers
If you’re distracted by the internet or your phone, try a site blocker or timer. These bad boys can block you from whatever website tends to drain your time. One example is the Chrome extension, $ StayFocusd$ .
$ Cold Turkey$ blocks you from your entire computer until you've reached a word-count or time goal.
You could even grab a typewriter or pen to draft away from screens.
Try out different options until you find something that works to kill your open-new-tab impulse.
5. Outline your novel or short story
Writers can get heated about whether or not $ outlines$ make the writing process easier, but there’s no need to get up in arms! Outlining is a tool like any other—some people find it useful, and some don’t. You might find that outlining your entire book in advance is too overwhelming, but this isn’t the only way to outline.
Maybe you’re stuck on a specific scene or chapter and you’ve spent the last few writing sessions getting sidetracked because you can’t think of what comes next. You don’t have to outline the entire book—just outline the rest of that scene or chapter to get you through that rough patch.
NovelPad’s chapter page with brief scene summaries is a great way to outline your story as you go.
This ties in to goal-setting. It’s easier to stay on-task if you know what your task is, and outlines can provide you with writing tasks to push you through difficult spots in your manuscript.
Tips to Improve Your Writing Quality
If you’ve ever played an instrument or practiced sports, you’ve probably heard that learning badly can mess up your playing long-term. Habits are hard to kick, and the later you try to kick them, the harder it is.
So, how do we make sure that we’re writing consistently, staying on task, AND improving as we go?
1. Make reading a habit
I can’t overstate how important it is for writers to read regularly. If you want to improve your own writing, make an effort to read regularly, especially contemporary releases within your own genre.
Reading is, on its own, a masterclass in writing. This is how you’ll learn how stories look. You’ll become familiar with the patterns inherent in structure, tropes and character arcs, and different writing styles. Then you can learn how to apply those to your own work.
2. Touch grass
Don’t chain yourself to your desk twenty-four and seven in the name of your writing craft. Our stories are informed by what we take in, and it’s especially informed by our lived experiences. Henry Thoreau said, "How vain is it to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live."
Of course, that doesn’t have to be literal (not everyone can literally stand up, for example), but leading a rich and engaged life is one of the best things you can do to improve your writing.
Try to cultivate hobbies, interests, and creative outlets outside of writing. Learn a new instrument, hang out with your friends, grow an herb garden, travel if you can. Spending time away from your desk isn’t something to avoid!
3. Join a writing group or find a critique partner
Critique partners offer feedback on your work, and you’re meant to offer feedback for your critique partner.
Learning how to give feedback to other writers can help you identify strengths and weaknesses in your own writing. You’ll also get practice accepting constructive criticism, and if you can remain open and receptive to criticism, you’re bound to grow as a writer.
4. Try a new writing software
There are tons of word processor options available to writers. Google Docs, Microsoft Word, Scrivener, NovelPad… Finding the right software for your writing style is like cleaning and organizing your kitchen before you start a complicated recipe—the environment will always affect the outcome.
If you haven’t experimented with writing softwares, you might try poking around! $ Google Docs$ is free. $ NovelPad$ has a two-week trial, no credit card required.
I was a long-time Microsoft Word stan (old-man-yells-at-cloud.jpg), averse to change and afraid of the future, of progress!, until I came across NovelPad. Most word processing softwares confused me with too many distracting features, but NovelPad keeps it streamlined and efficient.
Experimenting with a different writing "environment" might be the change you need to re-spark excitement for your book!
An author review after one year of using NovelPad.
Finishing a novel can be a Herculean task, but with organization, mindfulness, and good management, anyone can do it.
Happy writing!
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