Changes are Coming

 I've been thinking a lot lately about how I work, especially when it comes to this blog and my website, https://ruthiswriting.com.

And I've decided to make a few changes.

I've decided that it would be better if I put shorter posts on this blog.

All my posts are automatically emailed to all my subscribers, and I thought, who wants to get loads of long blog posts emailed to them all the time? Who has the time to read them?

My posts can be read online any time, and I know they're read by many people because my blog gets over 60K visitors a month. I think it's easier for my blog visitors and my subscribers to read more short posts rather than fewer long posts. I know I do. 

Also, I'm going to stop including an image with every blog post because not only is it unnecessary, it's time-consuming. 

My blog is about information, not pretty pictures. My own personal email setup, for security reasons, blocks images and other remote content, so I never see them anyway, and I'm sure most other people do the same, which is another reason not to bother with images.

Another reason for shorter blog posts is because I write articles for my website that are longer than my blog posts, and they're emailed to all my subscribers. 

And in future, for the sake of brevity, I'll email only a paragraph or two of each article, plus a link to it if you want to read more. I've ummed-and-ahhed many times about whether to email the full article or just a link to it, and I've decided sending a short paragraph or two and a link is best. The short intro will be enough for you to decide if you want (or have the time) to go on and read the whole thing.

So these are the changes I'm making to simplify your life and mine.

This way, you'll only receive the information you need without the extra waffle, which will give you more time to write.

https://cheritonhousepublishing.com

Be Careful - Don't Catch the FLIT Virus!

I was recently re-listening to a talk given by the great copywriter Gary Bencivenga. In it he talked about how easy it is to catch the FLIT virus and how it can ruin your life.

And sadly, I think we all have it.

The biggest problem is that once you're infected, it's almost impossible to recover.

So what is the FLIT virus?

Focus Lost - Internet Temptation.

 This is the worst computer virus ever because it gets into your head from the computer and leads you to so many places you don't want to go.

It sucks away your time, hour after hour and day after day.

Every time you think you've beaten it, it bites you again and draws you back down.

So how can you beat it?

You already know.

Stop browsing and start writing.

Set up internet-free focus times on your computer if you have to.

If you find yourself continually on your computer but you're not writing, you're infected and need to clean yourself by opening your latest WIP, or getting off your computer immediately, opening up your notebook, and starting to write.

Luckily, it's a virus you can control - if you really want to.

It's time to choose.

And just think...

You can have an ebook written by this time next week, or you can still be browsing online.

https://cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/7day.html  

Time Management is Not the Answer to Writing More, But This Is...

So often (usually too often) we hear the phrase 'Time Management' which is said to be the be-all and end-all answer to our lack of productivity. And we all agree that it is.

But then you wake up every day with a whole list of all the amazing things you're going to do, yet find yourself spending time on other things instead, and you wonder why.

It's not a management of time that's the issue. It's time.

What I mean by that is, you need to give yourself time to get things done. Stop wasting your time being "busy" and instead spend time on the things you need to do. It sounds simple, doesn't it? So why do we never do it?

I've been looking at this for quite a while now, and what I've found is that there's an easy solution. 

Turn off your screen.

That's it.

I don't know about you, but when I waste time it's always wasted online. And I've noticed that it's the same with almost everyone.

I see people walking down the street while staring at their phones and not even looking where they're going. 

Parents ignore their children because they're more interested in their phones. 

People in cafes look busy on their computers, but they're only scrolling on social media.

People wake up in the morning and immediately reach for their phones. 

And don't get me started on time wasted playing computer games.  

Screen time is a really sad addiction, especially if you're a writer who opens their computer, gets distracted online, and so never writes.

But you might ask, how can you get off your screen if you do your writing on your computer?

Get a writing computer. Use it only for writing. Nothing else. No internet on it ever. No apps except a writing app.

I've always had a separate writing computer, and because I don't use it online, I have to transfer my files to my main computer using a thumb drive, which also provides me with an extra backup of my work. I've never connected my writing computer to the internet, so I'm never tempted to go online while I'm using it.

I also have a Kindle Scribe that I use for handwriting because it has handwriting recognition to convert all my writing to text. I write everything by hand first. The Scribe only has basic internet for downloading ebooks and emailing my files to myself, so I can't use it to go online (unless it's to go to the Kindle website to buy a new ebook).

I usually (hand) write for a minimum of 2 hours a day (of actual writing, not doing other editing or admin work), and during that time I stay off my screens unless it's my Scribe. My writing computer is only for typing up my work because, as I said, I almost always write by hand first.

Limited screen time is a HUGE time saver, and it's so simple. And it works every time.

Give it a go.

Life-Changing Ideas

"If a competent CEO got to run your life for a day, what is the first thing they would eliminate?" 

This was a question posed by author James Clear in a recent email.

I didn't have to think about it too hard.

Time wasting.

If someone was looking over my shoulder for a day, they'd see how much time I waste, even though I swear I'm a hard-working, productive person.

Every day I spend far too much time checking emails. I always tell myself I won't spend more than 20 minutes, then next thing I know it's 45 minutes later and I still haven't finished.

Then there's surfing the web. I go online to look up one thing and end up clicking and going down one rabbit hole after another.

Chatting to people when I see them can often be another time-waster. Sometimes I'm only on the front veranda for a short coffee break, and neighbours will stop by to say hi, or their dogs will bark when they see me so I HAVE to go and pat them, and that starts a conversation with their owners. But if I had a competent CEO with me, he wouldn't allow me to waste so much time, even if it's a cute dog wanting my attention (because how can anyone resist a cute dog, right?).

Seriously though, not only do I know that I waste too much time, I also know what the solution is. 

I need to stick to my daily schedule and not let myself be sidetracked so easily. 

I know how long things take to do, so I need to get them done. If it's in my diary to be done, then I should do it and take my coffee breaks inside where neighbours and dogs can't see me. It's very friendly where I live.

A timer is always my best friend because I work better when I'm working against the clock and my time is limited.

I know how much I'm capable of doing when I stick to my schedule every day, and to be honest, it's not even really that hard.

It's never a good feeling to get to the end of the day and regret all the things I haven't done.

Which is why I'm now hard at work writing my next book, and I've already planned the next one too. I need to keep my imaginary CEO cracking the proverbial whip every day because it works.

Which is how I wrote this blog post in only 15 minutes.

https://cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/15.html