Tip #1: The Morning Session
Write when you get to work. The first thing.
After you take off and hang up your coat, put away your lunch in the shared refrigerator, say “Good Morning” to the boss, scuttling by as fast as you can to boot up your computer, then write.
Write right away.
This is important: Do it BEFORE you check your work email. Do not. I repeat: Do not check your work email before you’ve had your writing.
Have coffee ready. No way in hell are you going to get dragged into a work convo first thing in the morning because you’ve got your ass standing in front of the goddamn Keurig. Hell. No. Not us, comrades. That’s for reality-show fanatics and water-cooler politicos.
You’ve got REAL work to do.
If the Morning Person asshole stops by your desk (one inevitably will) and asks, “Did you see that email about — ” Interrupt by raising your generously filled, hot-as-hell, from-the-Thermos home brew, and say, “I can’t deal with that shit until I’ve had my coffee.” Even Morning Person knows better than to mess with their colleagues’ coffee time. Take advantage of that.
It’s your morning sess’, for God’s sake. You have all day to deal with that email.
Do a quick half hour, preferably an hour. Just hammer out a paragraph of daring description or a short, experimental scene or some feisty dialog. Don’t expect too much. No pressure. Just something to get your ideas flowing for the day.
It just your morning session, for God’s sake. You have your whole day ahead of you.