How to Restart Your Writing Routine

At the beginning of this year, I set a writing goal for myself: Finish writing the first draft of my memoir by the end of June. It’s a realistic goal if I maintain my writing routine. For me, this means writing first thing when I wake up. I set my Tomato timer on my phone for 30 minutes. Invariably, when the timer goes off, I’m in a groove. I take a short break and then reset it for another 30-minute writing sprint.

First 30 Days of My Memoir Goal

For the first month, I kept up with this routine really well. My partner would regularly ask me if I had done my daily writing yet, and for the most part, my answer was always yes. But then February happened. I took on a new writing client and two other major deadlines hit at the same time. 

When March rolled around, I had business trips and more deadlines. My personal writing started to take a back seat to these other urgent deadlines. To be fair, life has been exceptionally hectic this first quarter. In the midst of intense deadlines, I’ve also been traveling, and planning and hosting two baby showers for two granddaughters who will be born this summer to two of my sons and their new wives. But isn’t that how life always goes? Everything hits at once, and it feels impossible to maintain routines we promised ourselves we’d uphold.

3 Ways to Reset Your Writing Routine

So here I am, nearing the end of the first quarter. I have one more quarter ahead to still reach my goal of completing the first draft of my memoir. It’s still an achievable goal. But only if I get back on track. Can you relate? Have you ever fallen behind on your writing goals?

Here are three things I’m doing to get back on track with my writing routine:

1. I've recommitted to my morning writing sessions to work on my memoir. If I want to keep writing because the words are flowing, I’ll reset my timer. If I’m not feeling it, I’ll give myself permission to stop. Instead of beating myself up for not doing more, I’ll celebrate that I stuck with my routine for another day.
2. I’m tracking my progress daily. It helps me to visually see how well I’m doing keeping my commitment. In fact, I created a Writing Progress Tracker that I use to track my writing streak. You can instantly download it for free, too. See if tracking your progress helps you stay motivated to keep going.
3. At the end of each week, I review my biggest wins and reset goals for the coming week. My Writing Progress Tracker shows me how well I did to maintain my writing habit that week, and I’ll celebrate the success I’ve achieved in hitting my daily goals. If I have a week where I’m unable to keep up my writing streak, I’ll spend a few minutes reflecting on why this happened. Were there unexpected circumstances that prevented me from writing? Or did I give up on it because I wasn’t in the mood to write? I’ll recommit to my writing goal for the next week and carry on. No shame. Just a resolve to get writing again.

Strategies to Hit Your Writing Goals

How about you? How do you regroup after falling off the wagon with your writing goals? Life happens and disrupts our best-laid plans. When your writing routine gets derailed, a simple commitment to get writing again can be just what it takes to get you back on track. For more tips to help you build a writing habit, grab my free guide, “7 Tips to Start (and Finish) Writing Your Memoir.”