Earlier I wrote a post on how to get started in a writing session. Today I’m going to talk about good ways to stop a writing session, and also bad ways to stop a writing session.
You know that you need to write to finish your paper or proposal. You know that you need to write in sessions to get it done, as you can’t write the whole thing in one sitting. Getting started in your sessions can be hard, as many people know. But stopping is easy, right? Well, not necessarily. And, if you don’t stop your session in a thoughtful way, it may end up hurting your next session. So what are some bad ways to stop?
Giving up too easily. I have had those days where the writing was not happening. I was distracted with other thoughts or tasks that seemed to take priority. Sometimes, on days like this, it is OK to scrap your writing session and try again later. But, be honest with yourself. If writing off a writing session happens a few times in a row, chances are you are procrastinating instead of having an off day. Sometimes you have to push through the rough patches. Grab another cup of tea and force yourself to keep going, and regain momentum.
Stopping because you hit a goal or milestone. This one is not bad all the time. It depends on whether your goal is a good one or a bad one. If your goal is 500 words, and you reach it an hour into your two-hour session, don’t stop! Either you have momentum and have an opportunity to get ahead of schedule, or your goal was set too easy. It feels great to exceed your goals, but if you overshoot them every time, they need to be more ambitious. But what if it is the opposite: your goal is 2000 words and you have been writing for three hours, but you are only at 1000 words. In this case, don’t feel badly about abandoning an unreasonable goal and stopping before you reach it. You may need to calibrate your goals from time to time.
Stopping when you are exhausted. You may have heard that you should leave it all on the field/court/keyboard. In other words, work until you have nothing left, give it your all, empty the tank. That might be OK for athletic training, but the problem with writing this way is that when you have drained your mind and energy reserves in this way, you are not eager to start again until you have a long break. You will also have no idea what you need to do next, so getting back into the flow will be hard. So when you have exhausted yourself, going back for another writing session the next day will be very difficult, if you can do it at all.
That leads us into good ways to stop. One of the best is what I call the Hemingway method: “Always stop while you are going good and don’t think about it or worry about it until you start to write the next day. That way your subconscious will work on it all the time. But if you think about it you will kill it and your brain will be tired before you start.” Basically, you stop when you feel like your productivity is beginning to fade (being honest with yourself), but before you have had that mental crash. When you stop with the feeling that you could have done more and you know where to pick it up next time, you will be eager to get going again, instead of being filled with dread.
Another good way to stop is to leave yourself an action list. Spend a few minutes going over your writing plan or checklist, and see what you should do when you come back next time. This will give you a feeling of control over the project and you are wrapping up for the day, while also giving your future self a sure fire way to get started again. If you are doing pomodoro sessions, you can use part of your last On interval to look over what you have accomplished and leave yourself a to-do list. This is what I do as a full time writer, who stops and starts by the clock.
Do you have other suggestions for how to stop writing for the day or session? Questions? Leave a comment below!