Whenever someone asks me what keeps me motivated to write, I only half-jokingly reply, "Deadlines." Over the years, I've become fairly disciplined about my writing; I may not write fiction every day, but I do tend to prioritize it over other things I could be doing, such as reading other books, playing video games, blogging, watching TV, or sleeping. That's most of what it takes to be productive, assuming you don't have other things eating up your time, like a demanding job or taking care of a new baby. But I can still procrastinate, like writers do — though that usually means I make up for that misspent time later, because no matter what else is going on, having a contractual obligation to turn in a manuscript by a specific date goes a long way toward making me productive. One thing I've learned since
Writing on a Deadline
Writing on a Deadline
Writing on a Deadline
Whenever someone asks me what keeps me motivated to write, I only half-jokingly reply, "Deadlines." Over the years, I've become fairly disciplined about my writing; I may not write fiction every day, but I do tend to prioritize it over other things I could be doing, such as reading other books, playing video games, blogging, watching TV, or sleeping. That's most of what it takes to be productive, assuming you don't have other things eating up your time, like a demanding job or taking care of a new baby. But I can still procrastinate, like writers do — though that usually means I make up for that misspent time later, because no matter what else is going on, having a contractual obligation to turn in a manuscript by a specific date goes a long way toward making me productive. One thing I've learned since