How to Keep Up Your Writing Routine Over Summer
If you’re a stressed, fried writer, summer probably feels like the restorative break you’ve been desperate for… but it can also be a routine killer. Hot days, exotic getaways, and trips to the beach might make your draft seem like the last place you want to visit.
Fortunately, you don’t need a cooler apartment to get into the zone (although it might be nice!). All you need is a routine that fits with your plans. Try out these easy tips to keep your writing alive and well over the summer.
Lower Your Expectations
First of all, keep your summer goals small and achievable. The aim isn’t to hit 10,000 words every week; it’s simply committing to any writing at all, even if that’s just a sentence or two. Do that, and you’ll keep your creative muscles active, helping you maintain your “writing rhythm” all summer long — and avoid starting from scratch in the fall.
Just 10 minutes a day for three months will transport you far closer to that finished draft than one long, stressful session that burns you out for the rest of the summer. Keep the burns for the beach (or, actually, don’t — pack the sunscreen!).
Small sessions do wonders for your motivation, too. Pressuring yourself to hit an unreachable word count, then missing it because it’s too muggy to think, is disheartening. Setting goals that actually work does take a bit of practice, but aim for small and consistent rather than ambitious and (ultimately) overwhelming. Don’t discourage yourself; that’s a fast-track to empty pages.
Stop While It’s Easy to Start Again
Give your future self a head start and stop where it’s easy to pick up again. The hardest part of writing in summer is getting the motivation to pick up your pen every day — especially when it’s warm, everything feels slow, and a lazy morning seems more tempting than a first draft.
So instead of trying to face a blank page every morning, pick up in the middle of a paragraph or sentence you previously left unfinished. The trick is to stop each session while the words are still flowing: end in the middle of an exciting scene, or even in the middle of a sentence (as unnatural as it may feel at first). If you’re worried about forgetting where you’re heading, simply jot down a note so that future-you stays on the same page.
Don’t just take it from me — take it from Ernest Hemingway. In his Paris Review interview with George Plimpton, he explained his daily working principle: “You write until you come to a place where you still have your juice and know what will happen next and you stop.” Stopping before you run out of ideas will fend off writer’s block and let you write happily all the way into autumn.
Have an Anchor
Whether you’re jetting off to the Maldives or catching the bus to the local YMCA, another great writing productivity tactic is to create a “portable ritual”. This is a specific, consistent cue you can carry anywhere — and tap into when you’re ready to write.
For example, try designing a playlist that perfectly captures that flow-state feeling, where the words simply fall out of your pen. Play it only when you write, and your brain will learn to switch into writing mode the moment it hears the first note. You can’t control the summer chaos, but you can keep the same mug, playlist, or other small daily ritual.
Stephen King is another excellent source of inspiration here. He sits down, takes his vitamin pill, and plays his music with all his papers arranged in the same way. It’s his way of (in his words) “saying to the mind, you’re going to be dreaming soon” — a kind of self-hypnosis, perhaps. Give it a go, and by the end of summer, you’ll have written the next Cujo.
Let the Season Change the Scene
Finally, don’t let summer discourage you from writing. Let it fuel your work instead.
Elin Hilderbrand, often called the “queen of beach reads”, perfectly embodies this approach. She writes her summer novels longhand on the beach or at the pool, then types them up later. These settings obviously beat a cramped desk, but for Hilderbrand, the scenery’s not just a nice bonus — it’s tangible inspiration.
The heat and the heavy air, the half-melted popsicle abandoned on the pavement, the scent of tanning oil, all these things can help set a scene. It’s time to put on your flip-flops and start writing a summer romance, or maybe even a gritty thriller set over several humid evenings. If you’re a digital writer, just be careful not to get sand in your laptop!
All this to say there’s no need to mourn your winter writing routine. Set small goals, stop when it’s easy to start again, nurture your daily rituals, and embrace the seasonal change if you can.
There are indeed many benefits to having summer as the backdrop for your writing sessions, and here’s one more to mention: a sweet, icy treat never fails to pull me out of a writing slump.
With all these tips and that little bit of extrinsic motivation, I trust your summer will be a productive one!
A Final Word From Brit: If you’re looking for more ways to maintain your motivation to write, let me help. Grab tips from our free Resource Library or explore my editing and coaching services to learn more about how I help make your story shine.
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Guest Blogger Bio
Isla McKay is a writer with Reedsy, a marketplace that connects authors with the professionals and resources they need to publish their books. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her reading under a tree, most likely revisiting The Yellow Wallpaper.
Interested in writing a GUEST POST? Learn more about submitting to us: https://bewrit.com/write-for-us/.
