Curious About How Everyone Manages Their Time on Hubpages

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   JessBrazposted 10 years ago

   Hello everyone!
   Quick Introduction: I'm Jessica, from Ontario.. been a member of Hubpages for three years (though due to lack of time, writer's block, frustration, procrastination and if I'm completely honest with myself; laziness. I haven't always been very active on Hubpages.. My dedication seems to ebb and flow a lot. I'm working on that. lol)
   
   My question is how does everyone manage their time on Hubpages?
   The current Hub Pot challenge has been pushing me to finally try and establish a regular writing routine on Hubpages. I've pusblished four hubs in the past three weeks or so, which is the most I've ever done in one shot like that. I've read a lot in these forums that Google "likes" accounts that have a regular activity and doesn't sit stagnant for weeks at a time, so I'm trying to work on managing my time a little better.
   
   I read once, in these forums, I do believe (sorry, can't recall the actual thread or user who posted it!) that a trick someone once had was to start several hubs at once and have a back log of hubs ready to be posted so they always had something they could publish, even when life gets in the way and they couldn't find the time to write new ones. I loved that idea, and I'm trying to accomplish that now. I'm attempting to compile a few hubs that I can then publish once a week or so, in hopes that I will be able to have a constant stream of hubs to publish. It's a bit of a challenge though.
   
   I was curious if anyone on here has any tips, ideas, suggestions. Or maybe we can share with each other our processes for dedicating time to Hubpages. I have a rather physically demanding job, and I find at the end of the work day I am just too exhausted to do anything, let alone sit at the computer for a few hours to write.
   
   How do you make time for Hubpages? (I'm thinking I am going to try and set aside one of my days off, early in the morning each week as my "writing mornings") ... Anyone else have any writing routines like this? How does everyone find the time to maintain their accounts and keep posting on a regular basis?
   
   Thanks everyone! I'm excited to learn about everyone's routine. Hopefully it'll inspire me to establish a better writing routine for myself.
   
   

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      sheilamyersposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Since I write participate at other sites, write novels, have a full-time job, housework, and on and on, I limit my time on HP. I usually try to read any new hubs of people I follow and scan the questions and forums everyday and leave answers/comments to any that catch my interest. During the week, I limit myself to an hour or maybe two catching up here and I write one hub every Saturday. I'd like to be more active, but if I was I'd never get anything else done.

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         Marisa Wrightposted 10 years agoin reply to this

         People often make the mistake of thinking there's some kind of duty to read other Hubbers' Hubs, and they're failing the community somehow if they don't.
         
         The fact is, if we all stopped reading each other's Hubs, it would make hardly any difference to our earnings.  By far the bulk of our income comes from external visitors.  By all means, network if you have the time - but do it for enjoyment and relaxation, and to chat to friends - not as part of your HubPages "job".

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   Millionaire Tipsposted 10 years ago

   Interesting, I am getting a warning that no one has posted on this forum thread for over two months, even though it looks like it was only posted less than 30 minutes ago.
   
   I have to say that I vary a lot.  When I was doing the 30 hubs in 30 days and the 100  hubs in 30 days challenges, I was able to keep at it and simply write hubs and avoid the distractions for the most part.  Right now, I have been distracted a lot (based on things similar to your list), mostly laziness and inattentiveness. 
   
   This contest is motivating me to focus on the hubs instead of Facebook, Pinterest and the forums (for the most part).
   
   I do have to say that you mentioned not having a few hours to work on hubs.  You don't need a few hours.  Work on it a few minutes at a time - set up the organization, find or take pictures, write a capsule at a time, and by the end of the week you will be able to have a hub finished and ready to publish.
   
   I had heard about saving hubs, and I think that if you were a prolific writer that wanted to avoid publishing several hubs in one day, it would make sense to "save" them and publish another one another day, especially if you were expecting a period of time when you wouldn't have time to write a hub.  But for most people, it makes more sense to publish hubs when they are ready.  Since the age of a hub matters, and regular publishing is good, waiting to publish doesn't make sense to me.

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      JessBrazposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Huh. That warning is weird. lol. I did only post this thread within the past 30 minutes or so.. Must be some weird glitch?
      
      I like your point about only saving hubs if you're a prolific writer... which I definitely am not. Maybe I'll try and curb my enthusiasm a wee bit on that front and stick to one at a time. I have found that it is becoming a little bit overwhelming trying to work that angle. If I overwhelm myself, I suppose I'll just fall back into my old habit of walking away from HP for a while. It's a tricky thing this Hubpages. lol.
      
      Your advice about writing it a piece at a time is something I'm finding will probably work best for me. I started a hub I am especially excited about last night. I have lots of original photo's and a couple of video's that I took myself.. It's about a destination I've been to several time over the past couple of years and I'm utterly in love with (Algonquin Provincial Park).. I worked on it for maybe an hour last night after work. I added some of my photo's, wrote the descriptions for them, as well as the video, and worked on the introduction... Then I got really sleepy and shut it down for the night. lol. (I'm an 80 year old woman trapped in a 29 year old's body. lol. I have a hard time staying up past 9 pm some nights.) I'm well rested and have the day off today, so I'm going to work on another section this afternoon and hopefully bit by bit I'll have it done by this weekend. Now, if only I can get myself out of the forums and actually write. Isn't that what they say about writer's? They write because they have to, but will find any reason not to write? (Pretty sure I've heard that somewhere before)
      
      Thanks for the tips! Your input is much appreciated!

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   ChristinSposted 10 years ago

   Another thing to remember with writing is that the more you do it, the faster and more prolific you become in a very short time.  I would block out time for it each day, much like you do for brushing your teeth, doing housework etc.  Say 15 minutes per day or even 30.  Make it a habit that you develop and stick with it.  Even if you aren't writing a full hub in that short of a time - write outlines, or start one and then the next day use your 30 minutes to finish it up etc.
   
   The key to writing is doing it - daily.  I only publish a hub or two a month, but I write for a living, so by the time I finish my work for the week, I'm kind of pooped of the whole writing thing lol.  The more you do it though, the better and faster it flows.

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      JessBrazposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Writing advice from a professional writer... So cool.
      Do it daily. That I can handle. My first goal is to set aside 20 minutes to start with each day.. I want to write just one paragraph each time in a hub to start.. Doesn't have to be have it will look when it's done, but the skeleton of the paragraph at least. Then I'll walk away and plug away the next day. Baby steps.
      They say it takes 28 days to develop (or  break?) a habit. 20 minutes a day for 28 days! I think I can handle this.
      
      Thanks for the advice!

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         JessBrazposted 10 years agoin reply to this

         Edit: Doesn't have to be HOW it will ook when it's done... arggggg.

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            JessBrazposted 10 years agoin reply to this

            LOOK... eeessshh. Okay. I'm done. Time to walk away from the computer for now. lol.

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   jansharesposted 10 years ago

   I'm terrible with time management because I'm spread too thin, wearing too many hats.  However, I'm used to working under pressure and usually get things done. But there's also a price to pay. For example, I got a hub done for the challenge but I went to bed 3 days this week between 2am and 3am. Crazy. I'm also rushing and always tired.
   Sorry, my advice is to carve out specific amounts of time to write. Set a timer, stop at the allotted time to do something else.
   One thing that works for me regarding ideas is using my Blackberry to jot down an idea for a hub or poem. I've actually written my last three poems on my Blackberry and sent the doc to myself.
   
   Edit: I guess the sleep deprivation was worth it; just learned that the hub made the top ten in the challenge. Yaaaay, but I'm soooo tired right now. Will manage time better for the next hub.

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      JessBrazposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Congratulations!! That's awesome! We're in similar boats. lol. I stayed up way later than I should have a few days ago writing a hub that made it into the top ten hub pot challenge... I was so excited, but I'm still trying to catch up on my sleep!
      
      Cheers to you for your success!! Great job!

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         jansharesposted 10 years agoin reply to this

         Congrats to you, too, JessBraz. We can celebrate AND commiserate. Hang in there and good luck. Thank you for the good cheers.

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