Monday, February 3, 2014

Get in your Writing Zone FASTER


Writing time is precious. There are days I battle for minutes of writing time like they’re chunks of raw chicken thrown in the caiman tank.  And believe me, after what we saw during our last visit to SeaLife, those little guys can grapple.

Kind of cute in a vicious, hope-you're-not-a-chicken kind of way.

So when I get in front of the computer I need to get busy. Some days are harder than others to flip my switch to Writer Brain and dive back into the world of my waiting Work In Progress.

There are a few tricks I’ve picked up that help me get in the Writing Zone faster. When I open that laptop, the first three things I do are designed to sweep me back into my story’s universe.  

1)      My Desktop Background picture is the setting of my story. Pretty self explanatory. My story takes place in the deep woods, and there are gazillions of awe-inspiring wallpapers out there to set the mood for me instantly when I open my computer. 

2)     Music. This is the biggest one for me. With some music and ear buds—goodbye, real world. I like soundtracks. For my woodland adventures, Jurassic Park and Avatar are great. I’ve set up a movie score Pandora station too that’s fun for variety. 

3)     If I’m really stuck, I do a Google Image Search. A couple weeks ago I had a Twitter conversation with writers Maria Burel and Julie Segal Walters about this. (It was the inspiration for this post, in fact.) Maria occasionally shares some amazing historic images on her Twitter feed. For visual people, this can open the floodgates of inspiration.

NOTE about Image Searches: This can be a danger zone. For me, research can turn into a total time eater. Setting a timer isn’t a bad idea. But it can also have a huge pay off. I recently introduced a new critter to my cast of creatures and I was having a little trouble finding his voice. I looked at creature pictures until I found one that spoke to me instantly. THAT was my guy.  

Do you have any tips on getting into the writing zone quickly? I’d love to hear them!  
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3 comments:

  1. Marlana AntifitFebruary 3, 2014 at 7:42 PM

    Ah -- inspiration. These are some great tips Rina and I'm totally updating my wallpaper to reflect my WIP. Great post. :)

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  2. Diane BohannanFebruary 3, 2014 at 10:37 PM

    A very helpful post. Thanks! I love the wallpaper and playlist idea! Great ways to get into the Zone. Setting a timer for research is genius. I tend to swept away by the internet!! :)

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  3. Rina HeiselFebruary 4, 2014 at 11:48 AM

    Awesome! I'm so glad you found some of this helpful. The wallpaper one is fun. Then it's like, no matter what I opened my computer for, I'm reminded I need to Get Writing. :)

    Diane: yes. The internet is a time-sucking portal. I have NO idea how 20 minutes disappears so quickly.

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