(2 min read.) You don’t have to write every day. I promise this is better. It helped me build a writing habit without burnout, and now I write a million words a year. Plus, I always have a “just tough enough” level of challenge.
This tip comes from the world of sports performance, which probably knows more about practice and training than almost any other industry on the planet. As a writing coach, I’ve tried this myself and I’ve shared it with others. “Four Easy, One Hard” is a simple rule for building a writing habit that lasts.
Consider making four writing sessions easy and then make one writing session hard. Letting four out of five writing sessions feel easy and good might seem soft. It might feel soft. But this ratio lets you do more ambitious work in the long run; it’s a great investment if you want to build a writing habit that LASTS. Habits come easier when we’re winning AND growing in good balance.
When you make four out of every five of your writing sessions easy (80% easy sessions), you keep winning. You build momentum. Confidence. Competence.
When you make one out of every five of your writing sessions tough (20% hard sessions), you keep growing. You stay challenged and stimulated so you don’t get bored or complacent.
An easy writing session is one where you write for a comfortable amount of time, aim for a consistently achievable number of words of pages, focus on topics and subjects that you’re familiar with, and aim to write in a style, tone, and genre that already feels natural to you. Write to practice your current strengths. A hard writing session is one where you try to write something you’re really not sure you can write.
Four easy, one hard. Try it for a few weeks and see what happens for you. Did I make this whole idea up? Well, not exactly. I’d never seen it applied to writing before I tried it myself, but I did not invent this idea.
The world of sports performance has a lot to teach us about creative practice. I first learned about the “80% Easy, 20% Hard” approach while studying the training regimens of elite athletes. When I adapted it to build a writing habit at a higher level for myself last year, this approach of balancing easy/hard in my creative work the same way that physical champions do at the gym helped me BEAT all my writing records. This year, it’s helping me beat those records again. I’m a better writer and a more productive one, and I didn’t wrench my guts out getting there. That’s to say: I’ve tested this in the real world, in the highest-stakes situation I can imagine (my actual career), and it really works.
80% of the time, it’s valuable to focus on maintaining your baseline by doing what’s easy. Runners run slow miles, lifter lift weights they can handle, you might write something short about a familiar subject. Yes, it’s true: you can write easy pages, in familiar styles, on simple projects, with brief writing sprints, without sweating and sobbing, and THIS STILL COUNTS AS WRITING.
20% of the time, push yourself harder and do a bit more. Think of an athlete trying to run uphill, lift heavier weights, go longer, stretch farther, or do “one more rep.” Pushing hard that way 24/7 would lead to injuries, but it’s crucial to test your limits sometimes. That’s how you get stronger. Try to write for longer, go faster, tackle a harder subject, work on your toughest project, or attempt a scary new thing. You might not always succeed at these things, but they’ll grow your strength and stamina.
Gradually, by following this plan, your baseline for what’s “easy” will increase.
So, if you want to build a writing habit:
1. Let four writing sessions feel easy.
2. Make the fifth one feel hard.
Focus most of your writing time on practicing your existing strengths. About 20% of the time, attempt to push past your current limits. This creates growth without burnout.
If you wanna learn more about habit formation, the best beginner’s book is Atomic Habits by James Clear. (Using that shopping link supports me and a network of small independent bookstores.)
If you’re curious about the history of the 80/20 rule for athletes, check out this article from Runner’s World.
For some help figuring out what “easy” and “hard” look like for you specifically, come see me for a friendly, honest, sliding-scale 1:1 session. I’d love to help you build a writing habit that works for your actual life.
(If you feel like no writing is ever easy/fun/rewarding, you might consider trying out my dopamine-driven journal prompts.)
xo, megan
These (hopefully) really quite helpful creative writing tips offer what I’ve learned as an award-winning author who writes a million words a year, and what I’ve learned about supporting others as a private writing coach.
There’s no one way to write. There’s only your way. I hope some of my tactics and ideas can help you find it.
Yup, I’m a writing coach.
I work with folks at all levels of experience and all levels of income. My writers range from unhoused teens living on the streets to C-suite executives who want to up-level their communication. If you want a private coaching session but can’t afford it, email megan@howtowritesomething.com and ask for scholarship info.
curious/confused?: what does a writing coach do (and not do)
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