by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Sometimes dealing with both creative work and the business end can be overwhelming. On any given day, I’m brainstorming plots, researching a new promo approach, and reading articles about the publishing industry. It’s a lot to juggle.
The part that probably takes up the most time and energy for me is learning something new. And I’m always learning something new. I’m branching into hardcover, I’m reading about new translation platforms, I’m trying a new app, I’m using a new aggregator, I’m reading up on Amazon ads. There’s rarely a time that I’m not figuring something out.
I’ve discovered a few things that work for me in regards to both balancing the writing and business sides and making myself feel less-frantic in the process.
Write first. There is so much to learn and apply with the business end of things that it’s easy to get wrapped up in it and lose out on writing time. By hitting your writing goals first, you know you’re staying on track. It has always reminded me a little of housework. If I tackle a large project at home, like clearing out a closet, if I haven’t done my regular housework (loading the dishwasher, making beds, putting away clutter), then despite how much progress I made with the closet, I’m still feeling frustrated and behind. By writing first, you know that anything else we accomplish that day is above and beyond.
Don’t try to multitask it. I love using the Pomodoro method for my writing and at one point was interspersing the writing with research or business in 20-minute sessions. But I found that this wasn’t good for either the creative work or the business work.
Set a time limit. I usually set a timer for myself when I’m working on business-related stuff or learning something new. Otherwise, one link tends to lead to another and soon I’m lost in a rabbit hole of new information. I can eat up hours that way if I’m not careful (and usually I don’t have hours to spend).
Keep notes. I’ve learned that even though I’ve spent hours figuring out how to do something on my website or how to make the best ad, etc, this does not guarantee that I’ll remember how to do it the next time around. There are tons of ways to keep notes on this stuff: use an old-fashioned notebook, create a folder in Word, or use OneNote (OneNote is my current method for organizing my notes and works really well. Plus, it’s free).
How do you handle the balance between the writing life and business? Any tips I’ve missed?
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