Building writing routines for ADHD adults goes something like this:
- One day, an ADHDer wakes up and decides that they really want to start taking this writing-thing seriously.
- They are super excited, so they decide they will write four hours every day. That’s how much writers are supposed to write after all!
- Then, one of two things happens.
- Either this ADHD writer starts out all excited with their writing routine but they give up after about two weeks;
- Or the idea of a consistent writing practice is so overwhelming that they never start at all.
No matter which of the two happens, the result is that they decide, “Clearly, I am incapable of sticking with anything, especially a writing routine.” For some, that’s it. But for most, this starts to impact their self beliefs and even their mental health. They start to feel that the fact they don’t have a consistent writing practice means they are a bad person. (Or worse: a bad writer!)
As it is ADHD Awareness Month, I thought some awareness raising might be in order here. That’s why in this post I’ll explain why it’s so hard to build writing routines for ADHD adults.
The torture that is consistency
When you look for advise on writing online, there’s one keyword you’ll find everywhere: consistency. And as an ADHD writing coach, I don’t really disagree. I think consistency can be amazing, and super helpful for ADHD writers.
But there’s a problem ADHD brains have with consistency. And this problem stems from what I think is the main problem of any ADHD brain: a simultaneous need for and resistance to structure.
Structure and the ADHD experience
Without structure, we become lethargic and both projects and time get away from us (more on that in the next section). But when we have too much structure, our “inner rebel” comes out.
We are incredibly resistant to anyone or anything telling us what to do — even if that “anyone” is our past self, and “anything” is the plan we created yesterday.
This resistance can express itself in different ways: as frustration, procrastination, anger, or complete reinvention… But whatever way it expresses, we ADHD writers have started to believe that we’re simply not capable of consistency, even though we strongly believe that we should be.
And that is one reason why our writing life as ADHDers affects our self-image so much! Now, if you feel you are a terrible person for not being able to stick to a writing routine, as that is the mark of a great writer, it’s going to be even harder to motivate yourself to write.
But it’s not only structure and consistency that make it so hard to build writing routines for ADHD adults. There’s also our sense of time.
The intangibility of time
According to ADD.org, “For adults with ADHD, time blindness is the inability to sense how much time has passed and estimate the time needed to get something done.” Though this aspect of ADHD is not part of the official ADHD diagnostic criteria, it’s much discussed in the online ADHD communities, and starting to be researched by scientists and academics working on ADHD. And it’s definitely part of my own experience with ADHD as well!
How this affects the ability to create writing routines for ADHD adults
When ADHD brains have trouble estimating the time needed to get something done, this of course has huge consequences on the ability to create writing routines for ADHD adults.
For example, they might think: I will write after I’ve taken care of this financial task, until I pick up the kids from school. But then the task finance task takes longer than expected and they end up not having any time to write before they have to leave the house.
This trouble with estimating time also affects the writing practice directly. So many writers I work with feel like they can only start writing if they have hours to do it. And as they never seem to magically find an hours-long block of time, they never get started. Because of time blindness, it’s really hard to see that you can actually make a lot of progress in only a 30-minute window. And our all-or-nothing brains tell us: “If you can’t do it perfectly, why do it at all?”
Priority and motivation
And then there are priority and motivation: the third problem that makes it hard to create writing routines for ADHD adults.
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You see, unlike those of neurotypicals, our ADHD brains are not motivated by importance. And I have found that they also don’t prioritize projects based on importance. Instead, they decide what we should and want to work on based on four other factors:
- Interest/passion
- Novelty
- Challenge
- Urgency/pressure.
Now, I hear you thinking: “That’s great! I’m definitely interested in my writing project, so I will be motivated and it will be a natural priority!”
That’s often the case when we first start a new project or routine, when there’s not only interest and passion, but also novelty and challenge. However, it’s not sustainable.
How does this affect the ability to create writing routines for ADHD adults?
Right at the moment when your routine is supposed to become second nature, your “novelty” and “challenge” factors fall away and all you’re left with is interest. And that makes it super hard to create writing routines for ADHD adults.
In a world filled with stimulating, challenging and time-bound activities, a simple interest is not going to be enough for you to prioritize your writing project over everything else!
When a routine becomes old, therefore, or your writing project itself doesn’t feel new anymore, you’re going to be highly motivated to prioritize a brand-new idea or urgent but unimportant tasks over your established writing routine. And that’s when you abandon it altogether.
So how do we build writing routines for ADHD adults?
Well, that’s the question, isn’t it? Knowing all this, how is it possible to build writing routines for ADHD adults? Is it even possible at all?
Well, I’m here to tell you: yes, it certainly is possible to build writing routines for ADHD adults. In my coaching practice, I’ve helped dozens of ADHD writers create a sustainable writing routine. But as with creating anything, it will take some new strategies and tools.
ADHD Awareness Month blog series
This was part one in a mini blog series for ADHD Awareness Month, about “4 Hidden ways ADHD affects your writing life.” I decided to really lean into the “Awareness” aspect, to stick with the theme of the month. But I don’t want to leave you with only problems and without solutions!
Becoming aware of these issues is the first step, but it’s definitely not the last!
If you’d like help taking the first steps to creating a sustainable writing practice for yourself, just fill out the form below. Then, I’ll email you a link to a Google Drive where you can find a PDF with tools and strategies for each of the four blog posts in this series.
10 steps to building your sustainable writing routine
Fill out this form to receive an email with the tools and strategies you need to build a sustainable writing routine!
