Summary

The text advocates for writing in the morning as a means to enhance creativity, productivity, and overall writing quality.

Abstract

The author, Brian Rowe, shares personal experience and insights on why writing in the morning is beneficial for creative work. Despite not being a natural morning person, Rowe found that his writing improved when done in the early hours, allowing for better brain function and the rest of the day to reflect on the work. He cites his own shift from writing at night to mornings and references Stephen King's similar practice of aiming for 2,000 words each morning. The article emphasizes the satisfaction of completing writing tasks early and suggests that the quality of writing tends to be higher when done in the morning. While acknowledging that individual circumstances may vary, Rowe encourages writers to try morning writing sessions to potentially enhance their writing process.

Opinions

The author admits to not being a morning person but has found morning writing sessions to be more productive.
Writing at night can lead to burnout and is less sustainable in the long run.
Stephen King's routine of writing in the morning is presented as a successful model to emulate.
The author believes that the best writing comes from early morning sessions when the mind is fresh.
There is a notable sense of accomplishment when writing is completed early in the day.
While the author suggests that mornings are ideal for writing, he acknowledges that individual circumstances, such as work schedules and family responsibilities, may necessitate writing at other times.
The author emphasizes the importance of being happy with the quality of the writing, not just meeting a word count goal.
Rowe personally finds that his creativity and concentration wane after three hours of writing, indicating a natural limit to productive writing sessions.

Why You Should Write in the Morning

To find success in your creative life, try to get your writing done in the morning whenever possible. Here’s why.

Are you a morning person? I’m definitely not.

I’ll be honest: I’m not a morning person. I actually find it really hard to function before 9am.

For the most part I’ve been able to design my life where I haven’t had to do much every day before that time, but occasionally I have to leave the house early or have a job that starts at the first sign of daylight, and so I’m forced to make do.

I find my brain starts kicking into gear, on average, between 9 and 10am, never before.

At the same time, I’m no longer much of a night person either, although I used to be. When I was in my twenties, I stayed up until 1 or 2am every night. There’s something so magical, so calming, about the night. When everything quiets down, and there’s no urgency. The older I get, the more of a struggle it is for me to stay awake past midnight, but if I could stay awake later, I definitely would.

In fact, the first three novels I ever wrote I penned completely at night. In 2010 I worked a job from 9am to 7:30pm, and every day I would come home, make dinner, maybe watch a movie, then start writing.

My ideal writing time that year and a little bit into 2011 too was between about 10:30pm and 12:30am. And I liked it that way. It gave me all day to think about the next scene to write, and the last thing I always did before I went to bed was write, write, write. It gave me a sense of accomplishment.

But writing every night can also burn you out fast.

When I was no longer working that full-time job, I found no more reason to write late at night. And when I started getting tired more and more, my brain shutting off around 8 or 9pm, I gave up writing any fiction late in the day.

I wrote my fourth novel Happy Birthday to Me Again in the morning, and that’s the way I’ve written every novel since. Now, at age thirty-five, I would rather do my writing between 9 and 11am than 9 and 11pm. I would rather get it done early, and then have the rest of my day to think about the writing to be done the next morning, when I’ll be refreshed, when I’ll be most on my game.

Stephen King says in his craft book On Writing that he writes new fiction in the morning. He talks about how he aims for 2,000 words, or about ten fresh pages, and that the earlier he finishes his work the better.

He talks about how he’s especially thrilled when he’s done before noon, and how he’s out and about running errands, happy with the work and still with lots of the day left to go.

He talks about how sometimes the work doesn’t come as easy and he’s forced to keep writing through lunchtime, or even after lunchtime, and that he will not stop until he gets a minimum of 2,000 words down on the page.

Mornings are ultimately the best times for writing.

There is nothing more glorious than getting your 2,000 words down fast early in the day. It’s been years now but I still remember a day when I wrote my 2,000 words in forty-five minutes. Forty-five minutes, and I was done, and I was actually happy with the words I put down, too.

That is key, by the way, to be happy with the work you’re doing. It’s not enough to quickly write 2,000 words of crap, and it’s definitely in your best interest to spend a longer period of time, say three or four hours, or even more, to put down 2,000 words of quality.

Sometimes I start writing as early as 9am. Other days, for whatever reason, I don’t start until 11 or 11:30. On the occasional day when I didn’t plan well, I’m not writing until 2 or 3pm in the afternoon.

And here’s the deal: I find almost one-hundred-percent of the time that the earlier in the day I start my writing, the better the work is. When I’ve been busy all day, and I begin writing in the afternoon or evening, the work isn’t as strong.

There truly is a thrill in finishing your writing early in the day and then having your afternoon, evening, and night to do other things. Maybe revise some of your work. Read a book. Watch a movie. Make a nice dinner. Relax.

I’ve heard of authors who treat writing like a full-time job in that they actually write non-stop between 8am and 5pm, maybe taking a short break for lunch.

I’ve never been able to do that, and I don’t think I ever will. I have, on average, three good hours of writing in me every day. Three hours of total concentration and creativity. After three hours, I begin to fade, and then the work suffers, so why bother continuing?

But wait — is it okay to write later, not earlier?

Absolutely, yes. You are of course welcome to write any time you want.

Some of you might feel more confident writing at night, and if so, go for it. Some of you might also have work obligations that begin so early that the only way for you to get the words down is to sit at the desk later in the day.

Some of you have kids, responsibilities, and it’s a fight just to find a thirty-minute window of time to write, let alone those perfect two to three hours in the morning where all your creative juices are flowing. Trust me, I understand.

But if you do have a bit more freedom in your day, consider doing your writing earlier, not later. Try to make mornings the time for your current composition whenever possible. You might find that your writing improves considerably!

Here’s how to make 2020 your best writing year ever.

Brian Rowe is a writer, teacher, and constant dreamer. He received his MFA in Creative Writing and MA in English from the University of Nevada, Reno, and his BA in Film from Loyola Marymount University. He’s on Facebook and Twitter, and you can read more of his work at brianrowebooks.com.