a.m., in your home office. Or from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., at Compass Coffee. This is not negotiable. If you tell yourself that you’ll “write when you have time” then the book won’t ever get done. If you don’t think about the environment where you will do your writing, you may very well not make effective use of that time you’ve set aside. With both of these elements, you want to be as specific as possible. The more you plan now, the less you have to think later. If the book matters, then you figure out precisely when and where you will write it. How Much Time Should You Write Each Day? We recommend writing for at least one hour per day. If you only have thirty minutes per day to write, then do that. The optimal amount of time is two hours, but very few people can set aside that much time. Also, be realistic. Most authors cannot write (effectively) for more than three hours a day. What Time of Day Should You Write? The data is very clear: most people are the most creative about an hour after they wake up, until about four hours after they wake up. That means you’re probably most creative in the morning. But outliers DO exist, and so do night owls. If you are one of those, honor it. All that matters is consistency and action. Make writing a routine that works for you, and you’ll do it. hOW TO CrEATE yOUr BOOk WriTiNg PlAN · 127