Jeff Goins’ 15 Habits of Great Writers

I recently started subscribing to goinswriter.com. Jeff Goins is writer who started a blog in 2010 to help other writers. I’m really enjoying the way he approaches writing. He’s been doing this series called the 15 Habits of Great Writers – each day for 15 days, he highlights a habit: something that a writer should try to make second nature in his or her quest for inner peace. Now, that may sound a little dramatic, but seriously, if you’re a writer and you’ve ever gone without writing, well, it just makes sense.

The series is based on his ebook You Are a Writer (So Start Acting Like One), which is available for download from Amazon.com (and which he’s offering for FREE this weekend only!).

Anyway, I’m a little late to the party (he’s already on 13) but I’m going to try to create these habits for myself. I’ve recently added myself to a list of over 1200 others who are determined to create better habits. And I might as well share the journey here.

So for the next 15 days (or posts at least), I’m going to be talking about the 15 Habits of Great Writers. From Jeff’s website, here they are:

1. Declare.
2. Believe.
3. Initiate.
4. Practice.
5. Prepare.
6. Steal.
7. Start.
8. Build.
9. Connect.
10. Share.
11. Declutter.
12. Provoke.
13. Publish.
14. Brand.
15. Serve.

Each day, I’ll post something in response to the habit and maybe even try to update how I’m doing from the day(s) before. One of the biggest things I’ve struggled with as a writer is consistency. I’ve always been the type who waits for inspiration to strike rather than adhering to any sort of routine. Sometimes inspiration strikes, and hard, so that my mind feels all jumbled until I finally get something on paper. Other times, I feel dry, like there’s nothing else to pour out. This is why I’ve been working on the same novel for almost five years.

Looking ahead at some of the habits, I’m pretty sure that a writing routine is one of them … getting in the habit of writing daily. It’s a commitment. A commitment to myself, my stories, my sanity.

But all that is a thing of the past and I’m committing myself to complete this series, with the hope (no, the intent) that at the end of the 15 days I’ll have a writing routine.  Looking ahead at some of the habits, I’m pretty sure that a writing routine is one of them … getting in the habit of writing daily. It’s a commitment. A commitment to myself, my stories, my sanity.

And it all starts with a declaration.