Happy New Year! Starting off 2019 with a post on how to establish writing accountability feels fitting on many levels. I’ve decided to cut down to one blog post a month with a few bonus posts thrown in for good measure. After seven years, it’s time to make a shift. In order to devote more time to editing projects as well as to my own creative writing, something’s gotta give.
I’ve created a stockpile of informative posts that attest to my my authority as an editor and writer. As many of you know, blogging takes an incredible amount of work for a team of one. Never fear! My goal is to make each post more informative than ever, and the quarterly newsletter will live on as well as the monthly subscriber drawing for free editing up to 5,000 words.
How to Establish Writing Accountability
Like it or not, each of us is entirely accountable for our actions no matter the outside influences at play. How we react to any situation is the only response within our control. Writing is the way to get the writing done, and if you don’t it’s because you’ve made that choice. A writing accountability system will help you stop making excuses.
I’m blaming my friend for my recent transition to embracing accountability, much as I blame her for my transition years ago back to actively participating in writing critique groups after some time away post-college. Her mentions lead to my action. Interestingly enough, a pal from graduate school also started a writing accountability group on Facebook around the same time. A fire has been lit under my tush so to speak.
Understanding Accountability
It’s easy to find reasons not to write. Believe me, I am an expert at doing so. Who hasn’t whined about how much work they have to do whatever the nature of their work may be? That it’s simply impossible to find the time to write? Yet, nearly all of us have time to veg in front of various screens or tidy the house or yard when we could be getting some writing done. Accountability practices can go a long way toward learning how to prioritize.
Writing accountability involves many factors, foremost of which is making a commitment to yourself. Beyond that comes social commitment as a way to further increase your odds of success. There is also a transactional nature to consider, whether a crowdfunding campaign, critique partner exchange, or simply sending writing extras or “freebies” to your email list. Each practice holds you accountable for delivery.
Setting a Reporting Routine
If you are particularly struggling to get more writing done, you might want to consider setting up a daily reporting routine. A short email, text, or social media post will do. The point is to check in with another living soul on each other’s progress or lack thereof. A writing accountability partner doesn’t even have to be a fellow writer, though that certainly helps!
For most, a weekly writing accountability check-in will likely work best. If you vow to take weekends off, a Friday afternoon accountability report might be in order. Chances are for many, Sunday evenings tend to work best. And if you haven’t found someone to check in with via email, there’s power to be had in simply making a public announcements on social media. You can run, but you can’t hide!
It’s time to stop that feeling of a haphazard writing process that loops languidly like an old cassette tape that occasionally gets garbled.
Developing Goals
Now is not the time to be wishy-washy! The idea is to make writing a regular routine, preferably at least five days a week. However, there’s a chance maybe three or even only two days a week can be carved out for you. With that in mind, develop a sense of how much time you can spare to write. Word count goals do not motivate me, but they might motivate you. Instead, I aim to write for a set number of hours per week.
It never hurts either to set strategic goals that stretch into the future. Such goals are not set in stone and will need to be adjusted on a regular basis. This is how accountability works. Beyond daily goals, what are your weekly goals? This matters because there is always the inevitable day or two where you get thrown off course. How about monthly writing goals? Quarterly ones and yearly ones? It doesn’t hurt either to think two, three, five, or even ten years out. Targets need to be made visible if any chance can exist at hitting them.
Don’t forget about setting editing, publishing, and marketing goals as well. But start with your writing goals. None of the rest of the process matters much if writing isn’t being produced on a regular basis. It’s a huge balancing act, and you may find it worth considering to not write during major holidays or when editing or marketing needs your attention more.
Reflecting, but not Comparing
In order to benefit the most from writing accountability practices, or pretty much any serious endeavor in life, it’s necessary to be reflective. Your daily or weekly report need not be overly lengthy. Proceed by stating what your goals were and whether or not you met them. If you didn’t met them, explain why. Then go on to describe your goals for the next day or week ahead. That’s it. Write. Rinse. Repeat. It will become habit.
No matter what, don’t bother with comparing yourself to your accountability partner or others in an accountability group. There are so many factors that go into any person’s given schedule and output. You do you. You are the only person who can, so stop falling back on a victim mentality. Pull up those writing britches and carry on with your writing journey.
Complaining vs. Commiserating
As I’ve been applying the concept of accountability to many areas of my life, a quote from Eckhart Tolle has been rattling around in my brain these past few months. He states, “When you complain, you make yourself a victim. Leave the situation, change the situation, or accept it. All else is madness.” Complaining is a huge waste of energy. Stop your bitching already! Such tactics get old real quick. Focus that energy on more positive avenues.
Sharing our struggles helps us connect as writers and as humans. Not many writers are lucky enough to be able to make a living writing. Others writers may have a spouse with a job that allows them more writing time than some. No matter what, the art of learning how to say no can serve you well on your writing journey. Invest in yourself for once.
Maybe you shy away from setting office hours for writing because you’re convinced interruptions will happen. That may be the case from time to time, but set hours for writing give you a more stable target to aim for. Perfection isn’t the goal, but more reliable butt in chair time is.
Personal accountability is one of the cornerstones to a satisfying life. Learn to embrace it. Stop making excuses for not getting the writing done. Just write. It’s that simple and that hard all at once.
Tweet ThisWhat tips can you share when it comes to writing accountability? Do you have such a partner or group now or in the past?
If you enjoyed this post, you may also like reading Blogging Tips for Authors and Writers or Must-Haves for Author Websites.
Please share responsibly. Jeri Walker, 2019. Image credit: Cassette Tape.
One of the things that gets in my way is that I always think I need a significant block of time to write. So I never sit down to write for an hour or two if I know that’s all the time I have. Never mind that if I set aside a whole day to write I might only end up doing it for an hour or two.
Ken, that sort of rationalization sounds about right for how many writers tend to go about their writing time. For me, I’ve been carving out half hour chunks, which is better than nothing.
I’ve worked with accountability partners in the past. I think it’s helpful to staying on track and for actually setting goals in the first place.
In Los Angeles, everyone you meet is ‘working on a screenplay”. But so many people stay in limbo with their goals and never finish. I think it’s easy to get lost trying to reach creative goals because they can seen overwhelming. These are great tips for keeping yourself on track towards your goals.
Erica, I’ve helped so many people get their books written, but I have yet to write and publish one of my own. This accountability post is the result of years of me learning how to hold myself accountable for getting my creative writing done.
I do have a person I email who would probably not mind helping me with accountability, especially if it’s on a weekly reporting schedule. Developing goals is the hard one for me. Should I have goals that reach to a whole year? Should I have just monthly goals? Should I get nitpicky and have daily goals? Right now, all I have is wordcount per session. It is most days, although the weekends get kind of iffy. I don’t complain but I’m wondering if I should to my husband who has a nasty need for noise. I do compare a little but I also know how one person approached the writing process is going to be different than the way I go at it.
I wonder if I should set up my workspace differently so I have more visual that help for accountability.
Glynis, it’s best to start with daily and weekly goals. Once you are comfortable there, branch out and set some monthly and quarterly ones. That will give you an idea of what you can aim to accomplish in a year. When you have a sense of that, the time has come to look at two-, three-, five-, and even ten year goals. The most important thing to remember is that all goals need revisited and adjusted on a regular basis. I think it would be great if you could start emailing that person you mentioned as a way to work on your writing accountability.
This post makes me think I should consider going back to writing. Thanks much.
Denise, I really hope you do go back tow writing. You’re good at it and just have to remember that not every reader if the right reader for you. It’s a big world with a ton of people in it.
Now you’re just trying to make me feel guilty!! I’m the erratic loop unfortunately. I think having a check-in buddy is a great idea. Oh, but the commitment…:-) Seriously, this is a great post Jeri. And good for you on reducing your blogging time. Once a month is perfect. Hope you enjoy your new critique group. I belong to two and enjoy both of them.
Kathy, yes, commitment! Haha. I’ve loved growing this blog over the years, but it always holds me back from getting more creative writing done. I feel I have a good stockpile of posts, so I’m not too antsy about taking the pace down another notch.
I get bogged down at time and through a fellow writer we have started to incorporate accountability. Now we encourage each other to at least edit.
J. C., thanks for stopping by. That’s great to hear that you’re working with a fellow writer to keep each other more on track.
Ha ha, to Kathy’s comment. I haven’t had an accountability partner for a long time. I’ll ponder that. I like Scrivener’s Target feature–where I can set writing goals and a time frame for completing them. It does help hold me accountability.
RoseMary, I haven’t used Scrivener’s Target feature. Thanks for bringing it up. I’ll make a point to take a look at it in the next week or so.
It’s Pavlovian–the notice pops up and tells me: Target hit (or whatever) and I think: goody, I can move onto the next project!
I have an accountability partner. We check in every Tuesday. Usually keep our goals reasonable, like 1K a week. It helps, though. Keeps us aware and striving.
Loni, that’s great. A thousand words a week is totally reasonable and little by little those words add up!
Great tips, Jeri. I don’t have an accountability partner. I could try that and see if it helps. I tend to write a bit every day. It’s not a lot at one time, unless I get lucky and the words come. Setting up an editor (ahem) sets a timeframe because editors such as you, book ahead and set that time aside for an author’s work. This makes us accountable and gives us a soft deadline.
I just find that if I’m passionate about what I’m writing, nothing will stop me but if I’m lackluster I’ll def find excuses to get other things done. Congrats on your writing and editing getting more time, Jeri. That’s exciting. Blogging is so time consuming…it really makes a difference to cut it back.
Lisa, scheduling an editor’s time is indeed a good motivator for many!
Truly great advice. I definitely do not hold myself accountable. I have only myself to blame for the little bit of writing I get done. I like to blame my day job, the books I want to read, the languages I’m learning, the weaving or knitting I just started … but the true culprit is myself and the mind-numbing, time-wasting games I play on my iPad 😉 It’s procrastination, pure and simple. But it’s never too late to set an accountability system. I like the idea of a writing accountability buddy. Since I am (supposed to be) revising a novel, a writing accountability buddy would be very helpful.
Marie, you should definitely give an accountability partner a try. It’s sooooo worth it 😉
I’m such a procrastinator that deadlines and accountability are the only way I get anything done! ????
Meredith, I never would have taken you for a procrastinator given all the projects you post on your blog. Accountability and deadlines must be working well for you 🙂