Show Notes
Summary:
Episode #40: Take Charge of Your Writing Space, Tasks, and Projects
Episode 38 introduced four major areas we can manage: our writing space, time, energy, and attention. The next week, in episode 39, I posed a series of questions to help us evaluate our writing spaces in order to create a master “punch list” to work through in the week ahead.
In this episode, I review some progress I made on my own punch list; remind us to add a whimsical, playful element to our workspace; and then dive into another aspect of our space—ways to manage our writing tasks and projects.
Whether you choose an analog or digital solution (or a combination of both), dump everything into one task management or project management system and commit to it. Have your system (journal, notebook, checklist, or app) with you at all times to store any ideas that come to mind.
Finally, before we leave the topic of managing our space and move on to managing our time, I suggest thinking through a system for storing and accessing physical files—printed paperwork. Digitize what you can and store the scanned documents on a hard drive or app like Evernote. For the remaining physical, printed documents that must be archived or at your fingertips for easy access, a simple drawer with file folders may do the trick.
Take charge of your space, tasks, and projects for a more productive (and I predict happier) writing life.
Post your progress on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook using #writingspace, and I’ll try to track you down! I’d love to read about (and see) how your space is shaping up.
Listen for the full podcast.
Resources:
- The Play Project: A Month of Fun for Anyone (especially writers and other creatives)
- Take Your Play History
- #29: The Energizing Work of a Playful Writer
- #31: Plan a Playful Year
- #39: Manage Your Writing Space to Be a More Productive Writer
- #38: Manage Your Writing Space, Time, Energy, and Attention
- Beyond the To-Do List podcast episode that mentions committing to one project management system
- Todoist.com
- Bullet Journal overview
- Bullet Journal search on Pinterest
- Poets & Writers Toolkit: Productivity Apps for Busy Writers (Tweetspeak Poetry)
- 20 Awesome DIY Office Organization Ideas That Boost Efficiency (via Lifehack)
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Connect with me on Twitter and Facebook, where I’m always sharing ideas to help us be more curious, creative, and productive.
Image by Ann Kroeker, using photo from Pixabay, free for use under Creative Commons CC0.
Prioritize Your Writing Life — Take Charge of Your Workspace!
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So glad I found you this morning Ann. Just the encouragement I needed.
Kelly, I’m so glad! Be sure to listen to early episodes, as well, because I’ve talked about a wide range of topics and hope that each will encourage you in a different way!
I just listened to #39 and #40 after downloading your “Take Charge of Your Writing Space” file. I appreciated all the ideas. I actually think I may have listened to #40 a while back because I just moved my writing space and some of those ideas seemed to be in the back of my mind when setting it up. Ironically, it was precipitated by my son wanting my old desk, but it led to a wonderful new arrangement for me and I already seem more productive. It also coincided with me being more intentional with my schedule. I love listening to your podcast. Keep up the good work!
What a treat to hear from you, and I’m so glad the ideas are helpful! Glad your son’s gain and your loss (of the desk) turned into your gain again (wonderful new arrangement)! I remember dreaming of an L-shaped desk in a room with a door. As everybody knows by now, I don’t have a door. And I don’t have an L-shaped desk. But I have a really neat desk (obtained at rock-bottom price at a garage sale, which makes it all the sweeter), and a nice side table that’s very pretty. It ended up something like an L after all. Enjoy!