3 A Day Keeps the Doctor Away

The best advice I ever heard on writing was, "Write three sentences a day, every day, without fail." Let's think about this. Some people say, "Set a time and write at that time every day." But it can be hard to find a spot free that's the same time every day. This can lead to missing days and easy excuses. Some people simply say, "Write every day." In this one, there is no tangible goal. As humans, we tend not to accomplish goals without some tangible aspect. If you say write a page every day, that's good, but sometimes it can be hard to do a whole page. You could say write an hour every day, but what if nothing comes to you and you sit there for the whole hour accomplishing nothing?

Why does three per day work best? Everyone can write three sentences per day no matter what. There is no excuse for missing this. I don't care who you are, if you can't find a way to write three sentences per day, then you shouldn't even try to be a writer. This gives you a tangible goal that you can accomplish every day that is not set too high. Once you've written three, you're done for that day. How much easier could it be? It is approachable. I only have to sit down and hammer out three quick sentences today, then I'm done. Something like a full page can be daunting on a stressful, busy day, making you say "Oh, I'll just do two pages tomorrow." Bad news. The second you tell yourself you'll make it up tomorrow, you are in a big hole that's going to take a lot of climbing to get out of. Don't go there; it's not pretty -- trust me.

What is the philosophy behind writing only three sentences a day? The philosophy is that most people's hardest problem getting started writing every day. Once they get started, they are going to keep going. Three sentences is all it takes to get the creative juices flowing and to get you in the mood. Still, if you really aren't in the mood, you are three sentences closer to the end, and you didn't "break the chain." (Google search "Jerry Seinfeld Don't Break the Chain") It's so much easier to keep the habit of writing if you do it every day, even on the bad, unproductive days. You continue to produce. I dare anyone out there who only writes when they are in the mood or doesn't write for a living to write three sentences a day for a full month. You'll either not succeed or be hooked for life. Now what are you waiting for reading this thing? Go out there and write three sentences!

When's the Best Time to Write?

I'm sure everyone has different opinions on when to write and why it's best to write then. First, I'd like to say that if you've found something that works for you, stick to it! If it ain't broke, don't fix it. On the other hand, maybe we aren't as productive or inspired in the time slot we have made for ourselves to write in.

Write when you are most focused, concentrated, or creative (i.e. peak performance). I believe that these occur at the same time for a given person, but it varies from person to person. Right now, I prefer writing at night to in the morning. The general rule of thumb is that the younger you are, the later in the day you will achieve your peak performance (see source). In fact, "lazy teenagers" that sleep all day are in fact biologically programmed that way. It isn't their fault or laziness. They are most awake later in the day and most tired earlier in the morning. The opposite tends to be true of adults. Adults are most focused and awake in the morning but become tired earlier.

Source: Learning and Memory, Anderson