After 35 Years Of Freelance Writing I Changed My Work Habits

I started writing on a balky electric typewriter near the furnace and my daughter’s hamster cage. The hamsters died and so did the typewriter. Clearly, I needed better equipment and I bought a used PC. Using a computer not only increased my output, it tripled my output. So many books came from this computer I literally typed the paint off the keyboard.
Since then, I’ve bought several new computers and work in a home office. My office window looks out on the garden. While I’m writing I see deer, squirrels, rabbits, pheasants, robins, sparrows, finches, and an occasional lost duck. The view is always changing and always inspiring. Since I’ve been writing for decades I have reliable work habits and was used to them.
So I shocked myself when I changed my habits. Don’t ask me why I made these changes because I honestly don’t know. Maybe my subconscious was telling me to get out of my familiar rut and challenge myself. I still get up at the crack of dawn to write, but my outlining and writing approach are different.
Blogger Jennifer Mattern talks about change in her All Freelance Writing blog article, “Freelance Writers: Change Your Habits, Change Your Career.” She writes, “No matter how busy or even overwhelmed you might feel there’s always one option. Change your current work habits.” What were my changes?
First, I was more relaxed when I wrote the outline. Sure, I brainstormed on chapter titles, but I treated them like puzzle pieces and moved them around to see how they might fit. I let the titles “rest” for a while, came back to them, and revised them if necessary. I rearranged chapter headings as well and discovered that some bit better in other chapters.
The famous writer, Pearl S. Buck, thought the secret of joyful writing was the pursuit of excellence. I couldn’t agree with her more. With each successive book I am for a higher standard and clearer prose. That’s the reason I shifted the chapter titles and headings around and they’re still shifting as the manuscript gets longer.
Second, I used the headings like writing road signs. Right after I type the title, I type all of the headings in the chapter. If I get stuck, I scroll down and read the headings. Does the sequence make sense? Should I move a heading elsewhere? Are any headings unnecessary? So far, and I’m halfway through the book, I’ve only moved about eight headings.
Third, I set a page count for each chapter, something I used to do, but this time I’m more precise. These totals help me see when I’ve written short and not developed an idea as fully as I should. You might think these changes upset me, but the opposite is true. Changing my writing habits at this stage of my career is exciting and empowering.
The time may have come for you to shake up your comfortable writing life and surprise yourself. Follow your writing instincts, see where they lead, and enjoy the adventure.