I don't do anything in particular to help me focus on writing for long periods. I'm not at all sure what I could do to help me remain focused. The only thing that only slightly helps is using calming music for white noise. But even then my writing sessions are shorter than I'd like them to be. So I'm curious, do you do anything in particular to help you focus on the project? I wish to extend my writing sessions a bit but I have no idea how lol
The best way is to have a story idea that you're really excited about. The other best advice I know of is to take a break every so often, around the point where you start to get restless. Get outside or get a little exercise, maybe grab a bite to eat, and come back for another session.
Pomodoro app on my browser. It times 25 minute writing time followed by a 5 minute break. It also blocks any websites you tell it to during the working time. I don't always use it but some days I need it. I'll switch up spots in my home if my body starts to distract me (discomfort, squirming too much, etc).
For myself, I tend to read a book (or what I'm reading at the time). This helps to relax but also let me mind wander, getting out my thoughts
I don't have to do anything. It's all self-control. I have a job to do and I do it. For example, my current project, which officially starts on Monday, I know I'll be done with the first draft, which I'm projecting around 125k, by the end of the month. I'm not going to fail. There is no chance that I'm going to fail. This will be book 5 for the year and I'm on track to write 8. Focus and motivation come 100% from within. If you are dedicated enough to getting it done, you'll get it done. Refuse to give up and refuse to fail.
White noise is good. If you're anything like me, you can get more done in one hour than an entire evening. Just this month I've modified my method: I sit down, set a 60 minute timer, and copy my WIP word count into a spread sheet. Time's up, I stop writing and report the new word count. The sheet tracks my WPH rate, so knowing that it will sink dramatically if I don't spend the time writing keeps me applied. It also tracks total time spent writing so that I have an overview of how much I actually do in a week or a month, and on which days. Since I started (9th), I've written for eighteen and a half hours. That's with a creative WPH rate of 427, which is 7 words per minute. I wanted to do at least an average of an hour a day, but fell a little short because I am in constant battle with lazy writer's disease. The best thing about it is: I am either writing, or I am not. The state boundary lines of ON or OFF are clearly defined. There is no more sitting down at the computer, opening Google Docs and typing a single sentence before browsing a forum or Youtube or messaging my sibling—that's just forking around under the guise of productivity. There are other non-writing tasks I could be completing in that time, which actually allows more room for the bored-ass subconscious to churn out those daydreams and epiphanies.
This. Sort of. But what you call calming, I call Judas Priest and Van Halen. It helps that my story is inspired by this music. Gets the vibe goign, you know? Right now, I'm calling the vibe Grave Digger, but unfortunately the second story doesn't benefit as much from it. I'll need to find something that matches better-- Ah, next song, let's see if Black Sabbath does it...
