Structured Time

Well, I seem to be closing in on part of the problem with my recent drought of writing production. It actually is the promoting. This whole process of having Word 2007 open in one window and Chrome open in the other just isn't working. I end up checking my numbers, or making a post on the kindle boards, or even checking a review blog...and the muse just leaves me. Then there is a long while of me just staring at a screen, accomplishing nothing, before finally getting some progress and then starting the whole stupid process over again.

So something has got to give.

Now first of all, let me explain one thing right off the bat. When you're a small writer, following your sales on Amazon DTP and Novelrank can become addictive pretty damn quick. You'll find your mouse cursor easing over towards the bookmarks to those sites...seemingly of it's own will. And on a regular basis too. So lets establish something right now. If I have an internet browser open, I am in promotion mode and no writing worth mentioning is going to get done.

With that in mind, what I'm going to have to do is start dividing my time into blocs. The whole hour by hour schedule would never work with me. I would wander off it quickly, get discouraged, and then the whole idea would fail. So I'll try this "time blocs" idea instead. Basically, divide my time into multi-hour blocs of writing, promoting, kids, and if there is any left over, housework. The main thing is just committing myself to the idea that for a certain segment of my day, that I will be focusing my meager mental and physical resources in a certain area and not splitting them. Maybe that will lessen a little stress too, and let me be a little less of a grouch.

I guess we'll see. I'll give it a try today and see how it works out. Tomorrow divides best into three blocs...
1. Waking till noon.
2. The two hours while waiting for Rowan at her therapist.
3. The time between 3 until Karla gets him around 6:30. This time features children.

So basically I'll work with that, and see what I can come up with.

We'll see what happens.