I teach a freshman orientation class at the local community college and therefore talk a lot about procrastination. I've found that a lot of what I tell students to help with overcoming procrastination has been really helpful with discipline for writing. My favorite tip is the Pomodoro technique. For this, you set a timer for 25 minutes (don't look at a clock). Spend those 25 minutes doing nothing but writing--don't text, surf the web, eat, or even use the restroom. After 25 minutes, if you want, you can take a 5 minute break before getting back to it. Honestly, I'm always amazed at what I can accomplish if I focus, and I often get in the zone and can write much longer once I've had that focused beginning. Also, write or do something for your book every day. Even if you just write about writing your book. I've found it really helpful to sit down and write things like "I don't know what to write next. What if I wrote this? No, that wouldn't work. Oh, but maybe this would." or "I'd really like to have this happen or focus on this, and I think that if I do x I can make it happen." It's a way of staying immersed in my book even when I'm stuck, and I don't get to let myself off the hook just because I don't know what to write.

@kriver7 As Lynn said, it's an abbreviation for one of the personality types in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. The 4 letters stand for Introverted, iNtuitive, Thinking, and Judging. There are 16 different types in all. It's just a fun way to get some insight into myself and others who take the test. I primarily brought it up because my introverted side was really coming out when I wrote the post.

Thanks for the warm welcome, y'all. Rebecca and Bob, I'm always glad to meet other INTJs (rare as they are). And it looks like I'll henceforth be known as yww.

I had every intention of skipping the awkward introductions and just slipping myself into conversations here and there, but I've been caught out by @lynnmosher. So now that I can't hide in the corner anymore, here goes. I'm an INTJ. I like books more than just about anything. God's always reminding me that people are what really matter in the world, so, like Austen's Darcy, I need to practice my conversational skills and get to know them, so I can love them like He does. I've just finished my first draft of my first novel (Well, possibly it's a trilogy or maybe a novel in three parts; after the first draft, I have about 170,000 words.) I'm letting it sit for a bit before I jump into editing. It revolves around themes of female friendship, singleness, and heaven. And since I don't know what else to tell you, I'll stop now.

It makes sense. After all, artists often learn from copying the greats. I caught the same session. My question is this: how do you focus the copying to get the most from it? I think it's easy to copy without paying much attention and therefore not really benefit from it. I'm currently brainstorming questions to ask myself after doing some copywork to boost reflection. Some questions I came up with are: What is it about this passage that appeals to you? (Is it the turn of phrase, the emotions it evokes, the way it pulls you into the action, the theme, etc.?) Why does it appeal to you? Deconstruct the thing you liked. What do you notice about the style, pacing, vocabulary, etc.? How can you use a similar method in your writing? Write (or rewrite) a scene in your current work using the method you like. What other questions should I ask myself after copywork?

Also, many libraries subscribe to an online audio book service, so all you need to listen to audio books for free is a library card and a smart phone or mp3 player. I can't really afford an Audible subscription, but I've found a lot of books to love through my library's audio book service, and although they have fewer books available than Audible, this has actually encouraged me to expand my reading range beyond my usual genres and authors. So ask your local superhero (librarian) what your library has available if you want to listen to more audiobooks.

For auditory learners, the Google Docs app allows voice to text. I use that to take notes or even write scenes. I prefer it to recording and listening to myself later. And with the ease of accessing it on both my phone and laptop, I can quickly copy and paste notes into whatever program I use to write.

I just received my copy in the mail a week or so ago. My plan is to use it during the revising process since my characters do way too much shrugging and eyebrow raising at this point. Why does a shrug mean so many things?!

Generally, I listen to music that fits the theme of what I'm writing. For example, if I'm writing something more fantastical, I'll listen to fantasy soundtracks. If I'm writing a romantic scene, I'll listen to Michael Buble or something similar. If my character is on a camping trip, I listen to folk music or country. The music's gotta fit the mood of the scene or else be something I can easily tune out.