The best-worst thing about being a writer is that–short of deadlines imposed by publishers–is that it’s a business of one. Which means, trying to find motivation and energy to write and spend 8 hours a day sitting in front of a computer can be a difficult thing to do.
One of the things I’ve come to learn is that (for me) the productivity of my day depends on how I start it. If I start the day with a mix of early-morning-easy and moderate activity, it seems to energize me to sit through edits, administration, an production of manuscripts.
Here’s a list of some of the things I do to start my day off on the right foot.
1) Breakfast – whether it’s a cup of tea, or a cup of tea and food, start the day with something delicious
2) Music – there’s a ton of research on the benefits of music and its link to creativity. I have a playlist of energetic,
happy music that starts my day.
3) Laugh – I give myself 5-10 minutes to check out funny websites and start my day with a laugh (again, TONS of evidence that links humour with increased immune responses, the ability to combat stress)
4) Find the aw – I love the africam.com website. It gives me the warm, fuzzy “aw,” that starts 
my day.
5) Exercise – take yourself or someone you love for a walk. If you can, see if you can’t roll in some author time with your fellow writers. It’s a great way to exercise body and brain.
6) Writing exercise – Creating 300 pages of novel is daunting. I get the ol’ brain going by doing some kind of writing exercise–blog, send a funny email to a friend–something that get me writing and switches my brain to work.
