Digital Detox



Being an author, I get to do fun stuff like blogging and call it marketing. I can also "market" on Facebook, Goodreads, e-mail, Twitter, etc.  I love it because I've met wonderful people, but I can easily spend too much time online.

It got to the point where my online activities were interfering with my actual writing.  I'd start to write a chapter, then I'd get to a hard part.  Instead of working through the hard spot, I'd do some "research" on the internet.  Before I knew it, my writing time was over, and I had only a few paragraphs written.  (So much for self-discipline, huh?)

We use a program called Kidswatch to limit my kids' computer time.  It works great because the kids hate the program instead of me. But I can't use it on myself because I know all the passwords.
So my mother-in-law gave me her old laptop.  (She has a new one.)  It has no internet access or games!  I spend my writing time on the laptop, and I'm getting a lot more writing done.  Last week, I hit 200 pages on my current work in progress.  Yay!

It's a self-defeating question for a blogger to ask, but I still want to know--how do you keep from spending too much time on the internet?

Comments

  1. My current excuse is bed rest. :)

    Ha! No, I get what you mean. I think turning off the Internet is the perfect solution. I also try to write on a schedule. I set aside two hours that's just for writing and stick with it the best I can. It helps to know that when I'm done Twitter and blogging will still be there.

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  2. Wish I knew the answer to that.

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  3. Ah, the dilemma of disconnecting from the internet. Looks like you found a good solution :)

    Sarah Allen
    (my creative writing blog)

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