How to Avoid Procrastination and Write Productively

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Ernest Hemingway writing at a table.

Not a great way to start your day, I’ll admit.

In my defense, I was half asleep when I stepped outside to begin the morning school drop-off. If it hadn’t been for my daughter—bright and alert after an hour of Roblox while I drooled all over the couch in my bid to catch a few more z’s—I would’ve humiliated my Rafa tennis shoes, already relegated to school and grocery runs, with the occasional tennis match thrown in.

Thankfully, the danger was averted. Whatever creature made the effort to climb over our motion-detecting gate and then position its posterior on the small, worn-out welcome mat—talk about taking things literally—outside our door to leave its opinion on the sudden change in London weather, has my grudging respect.

If only I could muster that kind of drive and determination.

I went to bed last night with such high hopes. My dhaba-style daal tadka had turned out well. Buoyed by the favorable response from my “clientele,” I powered through an ambitious daily schedule.

I’ve always been a procrastinator when it comes to writing, making excuses that if only this or that hadn’t happened, I could’ve finished the work. I figured today was as good a day as any—Sinner had wrapped up the US Open, leaving me with no more tennis highlights to watch on YouTube, which usually leads me down a rabbit hole of pondering what went wrong with Bennifer 2.0 or whether Shah Rukh Khan is the last of the superstars. Meanwhile, the little one—technically my daughter but, for all practical purposes, a competitor—fights with me over who has the best jokes, pranks, and wisecracks. Nowadays, school, friends, jewelry, and interior decorating seem to occupy most of her time.

The Boss only comes downstairs three times a day. The first is right after I’ve returned from the school drop-off, either stifling my laughter over the latest Everybody Loves Raymond brouhaha or catching a power nap on the couch with my trusty portable fan. Yes, you need fans even in London, though with the changing weather, I feel it’s time for Wynona (yeah, I named my fan—big deal) and me to have the “It’s not you, it’s me” talk as she cools my face.

In any case, the fourth stair from the bottom always sounds the alarm when the Boss comes down, giving me just enough time to jump up, fix my hair, plant a focused expression on my face, and hope she buys it. We have coffee and breakfast together before she heads to her office upstairs. I won’t see her again until lunch, and then once more around six in the evening for tea and biscuits.

This leaves me plenty of time theoretically to be productive. So, last night, as I watched Girls with the Boss—married fellas, back me up here, we can’t be expected to watch Sons of Anarchy and still stay happily married, can we? So what if I’ve watched Sex and the City four times? Yes, the six seasons, the two movies, and the And Just Like That spin-off—don’t be such a Miranda about it, it’s normal—I realized it was time to get my house in order. Side note: I’ve always been a fan of Lena Dunham’s writing, and the show has grown on me with its realistic, flawed characters. That’s the kind of people I want to write in my stories. Plus, in this season, Lena’s character is starting her MFA, something I’ve been thinking about lately—but more on that later.

Anyway, as one does at night, hopped up on dhaba-style daal tadka and some good-quality shows—we watched Ripley before Girls—my brain was buzzing with energy. When I fired up my Mac, I knew I was writing a check my brain wouldn’t be able to cash, but I forged ahead, as one does at midnight.

I made a timetable for myself:

  • 6:00–7:00 AM: Wake up, shower, change.
  • 7:00–8:00 AM: Get daughter ready, have breakfast, and start work.
  • 8:00–9:00 AM: School drop-off and come back.
  • 9:00–10:00 AM: Breakfast (if I haven’t had it yet). I can read the news or watch TV, but only if I’m on schedule.
  • 10:00–11:00 AM: Start creative work—1,000 words.
  • 11:00 AM–12:00 PM: Continue writing.
  • 12:00–1:00 PM: Keep at it.
  • 1:00–2:00 PM: Lunch and job-related work.
  • 2:00–3:00 PM: More job-related work.
  • 3:00–4:00 PM: School pick-up.
  • 4:00–5:00 PM: Lunch prep and back to work.
  • 5:00–6:00 PM: More writing.
  • 6:00–7:00 PM: Gym/tennis.
  • 7:00–8:00 PM: Shower and winding down.

In a perfect world—not the one with Kevin Costner and Clint Eastwood (although that movie did make me cry)—I’d write at least 1,000 fresh words, no editing, and have time to contribute to this blog while keeping pace with job applications and daily work.

In the grand scheme of things, almost stepping in poop was a wake-up call. We’ve all been there: distracted, taking our eyes off the prize, only for the proverbial dog/fox—yeah, Phyllis, I’m looking at you; stop leaving your leftovers on our swing!—to crap all over your plans.

The trick is knowing there are no tricks or shortcuts to being productive. You will have days where you’d rather sit and do nothing. The key is to not get discouraged. I’m going to finish my novel by the end of the year, and so can you. Let’s help each other by being accountable and staying motivated.

What are some tricks you use to stay motivated in your creative endeavors?

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