So, I went to the Pen & Paper Writing Group meeting yesterday morning and really enjoyed it. They spend the first two hours writing. In the third hour, participants may choose to share some of what they've written, while others may comment.
Now, when I nano, I write fast and without censoring anything; the bulk of words on the page are total crap of the draftiest draft imaginable. I have zero interest in sharing this dreck with anyone, so I was sort of iffy about that third "sharing" hour cutting into my writing time.
As it turned out, I banged out 3917 words in the first two hours, which is almost double the rate that I manage at afternoon or evening write-ins. I'm reminded that time of day can make a difference, and I plan to experiment with morning writing again this weekend.
Anyone else notice that they're more productive or creative at particular times of day?
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Lee-Anne
67,393 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2007 - 10 06
Hi Lee-Ann, congrats on writing that much in a short period of time! How are your wrists and fingers today?
I seem to be at my most creative (not necessarily at my fastest, though) at about 3pm - which is fine, since I don't work f/t. But evenings/nights (after 11pm) is when I am at my fastest (that must be when all the caffeine has finally kicked in for the day).
It's great when you figure out your best times and work with them to get your word count skyrocketing. Well done. :)
61,078 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2007 - 14 17
That's a great word count for two hours. Be proud. Be very proud.
I find I do my best writing just before bed. Of course, that means I have to keep going until a break in the action or I'll lie away thinking about it. November is a sleep-deprived month.This weekend, I'll be trying to type on my Alphasmart Dana while driving to and from Toronto. I hate missing a weekend of writing time. Don't worry. I'll only type when someone else is doing the actual driving. LOL
Hey Lee-Anne. I hope you don't mind. I've added you as a buddy.
Nancy
50,567 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2007 - 14 31
Sometimes.
I find that my brain mulls things over while I'm sleeping, so I'll wake up and have proto-scenes running through my head. As such "just after I get up" seems to work pretty well. (Also: since I tend to get up early, most people on my lj-flist haven't updated yet, so there's nothing to distract me in my usual internet haunts. ;-)
I also find that writing after about 8pm tends to involve wonderful, wonderful writing-rolls. :-) I haven't quite figured out why that is. Possibly because I know I won't have to keep any eye on the clock until the next morning. ;-)
51,194 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2007 - 20 33
Late at night, just before bed, used to be my best time - that was before family interrupted desireable sleep cycles. I'm still in the process of discovering a new "Best time" and haven't quite fallen into it yet, other than when I come across something that just really flows - meaning something that i've been inspired by. So at the momement, My best times are times of greateast inspiration rather than specific segments of the day - for now.
At some point in my life.. I will retire to a dreamy lake side cottage, where I can ease out of bed, grab coffee and spend beautiful mornings beneath leafy trees writing of willowhisps...
Time for bed...
53,637 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2007 - 21 44
Apparently late at night or wee hours of the morning which is rather problematic as my work (more importantly that drive to and from Carleton Place) dictates my having early nights during the week days. The second best time is in the afternoon where once again the job interferes.
The first year I did NaNo evenings were the best. I want those days back.
51,962 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2007 - 05 41
Time of day has absolutely no impact on my writing speed or quality. Passion, on the other hand does.
61,111 / 50,000
Nov 15, 2007 - 21 52
I tend to work best really late at night. Last year, the bulk of my NaNoNovel was written between 12 midnight and 4 am. This year, I work full time and have to be out of the house by 7, so no more late nights for me unfortunately, and I haven't found a time that works quite as well. Probably early to mid-evening is the next best substitute... Late morning also is a good time but I have to do my day job work at that time so that doesn't work out. I miss my late nights!