Some ideas to get you organized and keep you organized as you grow as a writer.
Story idea folder: a home for all those scraps of papers or napkin scribbles.
Blog folder: a home for a list of your articles and any ideas for new articles.
Story folder: a home for your story in progress and all notes pertaining to the story. Depending on the story, this folder could get big and can be divided into multiple folders: character, plot, setting, etc.
Submission Binder/graph: for you short story writers. Keep clear records of where your stories have been and where they are at. If you keep hard copies of your stories, create a binder to keep them in along with your rejections.
Writing Log: keep track of how long you spend creating a story. It will be helpful when you get that contract and a publisher inquires on how long it will take you to write your next book. (Hey, we have to have dreams, right?)
Now, stay organized. Once you get a system set up, stick to it. Depending on your situation, you may not be able to keep all said folders close by, so make a date to sort your mess into its proper location. Don’t wait a month! This will cause more aggravation than it’s worth. Your best bet would be at the end of each day/writing session.
Note: all suggestions are computer adaptable, but some of us still like paper.
How do you stay organized?
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4 comments:
My desk isn't very organized. I know where things are on it but it's used for work, writing, and my daughters occupy the space on occasion as well. They know not to remove anything ;)
On the other hand, my online files of stories, tracking submissions, etc. are well organized and frequently backed up.
Terry, thanks for commenting. I'm much more organized than I began, but I tend to drag behind and then have a mess to deal with. I'm trying to be better at keeping up with everything, so I don't have that downtime to procrastinate.
Cher,
All we can do is learn and do our best to improve, just like you're doing.
Terry,
Very true. One step at a time.
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