Binge Watching Netflix and 5 Steps to Actually Writing

I think that technology can sometimes kill creativity. Actually I'm sure that it does. Whether you sit before your TV and watch the marathons of MythBusters or if you watch TV on Hulu or Netflixs, the ability to have something inundate you and get you hooked is endless. I spend a lot of my time watching shows that I kind of care about. And I binge watch them. Episode after episode.

True sometimes I do this while I'm knitting. I find it easier to pay attention to whatever I'm knitting if I have music or something playing in the background. But most of the time my TV watching is just me sitting in front of my mac, watching just one more episode. I do the same with a good book. Just one more chapter, one more chapter and then I'll go to bed. All the time that I spend vegging out in front of my computer, whether on netflix, addicating games, or facebook, I could be spending writing. I could have my novel written by now if I just would sit down and actually write.

So here are my 5 steps to actually writing:

1) When writing on the computer, turn off your internet connection. (This way you can't check email, facebook, or your netflix queue).
2) Before you do anything fun like watching a show, or knitting, or playing just one game on addicating games, write. Get the writing done first.
3)Making writing part of your daily schedule. (I come home, eat dinner, do the dishes, and sit down to write)
4) Commit to writing a certain number of words a day. (I write 1000 words a day, except sunday)
5) Take a day off every week. Nothing helps your brain process and think like a day when you aren't working on a project.

Of course the above is difficult and I am easily distracted and forget. There are many nights when I have been drawn into watching 5 episodes of buffy the vampire slayer, instead of writing my 1000 words. Often I write 1000 words during my lunch break and although I should probably still write that night, I give myself the night off because I've already got by 1000 for the day. Still having some basic rules in place, even if I break them, does help.