3 Ways to Finish Your Book on Time
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Can you write a book in a few months? Or even less? That’s what I set out to accomplish this summer. And this is what I learned about how to finish your book by any specific deadline.
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There are 3 things you need in order to finish your book on time:
1 – You need to know WHO your story’s about and WHAT’s going to happen to them.
This can take A LOT of planning, especially when you’re just starting out with a new book idea. But it’s SUPER important to help you finish your book in a short period of time.
I use the Hero’s Journey exercise and create a Character Profile card to help me plan everything. (Including character backstories for each of my characters. Not just my main character!) And I even write a few backstory scenes, as Lisa Cron suggests in Story Genius, to help me solidify the EXACT direction my story is going.
(If you haven’t already, pick up Plot Perfect and Story Genius to help your writing. Seriously, the best books I’ve read on craft writing!)
2- Have a set schedule and a HARD deadline for when you want to finish your book.
The easiest way to meet a deadline is to set your date and work backward. Which is what I did when I decided I wanted to finish my book by July 31st. (And what I had to do after I procrastinated and then decided to rewrite everything in May 🤣)
The key to success here though is to set a realistic goal. Think through how much time you have to write each day, the number of days you can commit to writing each week, and the average number of words that you can write per sitting.
You want to make sure it’s achievable, so you’ll actually stay committed!
3- Hold yourself accountable.
Writing is an independent act, which means you’ll only be disappointing yourself if you don’t finish on time. However, if you struggle with keeping yourself accountable, reach out to critique mates or members in your writing group to work with you.
This way you can work as accountability partners to stay motivated and keep moving forward with your story!
Now that I’ve learned how to master my writing time (and managed to write a manuscript over 30,000 words, which I didn’t even think was possible!), so I’ve shared my secrets. 😄
The Productive Writer course sets you up to write more with less time, to achieve your writing goals, and to make more time for your writing without all the guilt or FOMO. Learn more about it here.
And for more productivity tips around the blog, check out these articles:
- How to Write More with Less Time
- Find Time to Write without Feeling Guilty
- Motivate Yourself to Write when You Don’t Feel Like it
- 3 Ways to Make the Most of Your Writing Week
- 3 Major Takeaways from Writing Full Time
- 5 Work-from-Home Habits to be a Productive Writer
- 4 Quick Editing Tips for Your Kid’s Book
