Writing daily takes away the idea that the act of writing is an event or production that you must be prepared for. Seeing it as an event makes it much easier to procrastinate and avoid – you make excuses about not having the right pen or it not being the right time of day. When you write daily, it becomes less of a big deal.

As for writing to a particular person, I came up with this after realising I could easily write sparkling, witty anecdotes when they were in emails to friends, but if I had to write the same story for publication, I’d freeze up. I’d start questioning every sentence and trying to make it sound better. I’d cram in obscure words to make myself appear learned, then wonder why my prose was so forced and lifeless.

This happened because when I was writing to a friend, I was writing to someone I felt comfortable with. I was relaxed, I was chatty, and while I wanted to entertain, I wasn’t bothered if I made a mistake or sounded a bit goofy. When I was writing for publication, however, I’d picture a crowd of unimpressed people, each looking at their watch and giving me ten seconds to impress.

Now I choose one person to write to every time I write. It makes me feel much more at ease and has resulted in flowing, more natural prose.

I recently wrote a blog post on this very topic; it’s here: How to Quit the Procrastinating and Get Writing.

1. Talk out loud about what you’re thinking, and jot down notes.

2. When you are on a roll, simply get out of bed and veer from what you’re doing and jot down copious notes.

3. Don’t write when you don’t feel it. Write lots when you do.