Why I Schedule All My Posts

Why I Schedule All My Posts

To put it simply, I schedule all my blog posts because I work full time, have a long commute and don’t have the time to sit down and write a post every day. Or, if I did make the time, it would be by sacrificing something I care deeply about, such as sleep. And that’s just not going to happen! So that’s the short reason I schedule all my posts.

 

Why I Schedule All My Posts

 

Why I Schedule All My Posts

 

The longer reason I schedule all my posts is more complex:

 

I find it hard to write at home. I need a strange combination of distractions and quiet to write – and when I’m at home I would rather be kicking the ball for my dog or hanging out with my husband. You know, having a life.

 

I get blog post ideas ALL the time. I keep a notepad on me at all times to scribble down post ideas. If it’s a persistent idea, I pull out my phone, type away and then email it to myself. The post then generally goes into wordpress as a draft for finishing and polishing.

 

If I’m bulk writing posts, I used to use Evernote. This is mostly for the distraction free nature of it – if I’m writing in WordPress I will get distracted by updates, comments and site maintenance, let alone that I will be looking for a photo to include in the post, be optimising it, uploading it…you get the drift. These days I do less bulk blog writing – partially because my “pending” area in WordPress is full of blog posts to edit from when Bloggers and Bacon was its own blog! 

 

What I’ve taken to doing is spending a night away from home every now and then. I book myself into a hotel with comfy beds, a good desk and most importantly, free wifi. It gives me a mental break from home, space to write, and content for my travel blog. Actually, I’m well overdue for one of these trips now… 

 

How do you manage your blog and life? Do you schedule posts?

 

15 Replies to “Why I Schedule All My Posts”

  1. I schedule posts where I’m linking up with other bloggers so Monday and Thursday at the moment. Then I ad lib everything else in between.

    Scheduling does give my posting routine some structure and because I have set themes for these posts, it does prevent everything I post being the same old same old.

    SSG xxx

    1. Vanessa Smith says: Reply

      I like your point – scheduling does help us avoid repetitive patterns. Or keep them, if the repetitive is a good thing 🙂

  2. I generally sit at my desk at home and work on my big iMac, I bought a laptop but rarely go out to cafes and write posts like I thought I would. I schedule my posts but I don’t bulk write or schedule like I used to … or at least not to the extent and with the consistency I used to. I love using my WordpPress Editorial Calendar for planning and scheduling. #TeamLovinLife

    1. Vanessa Smith says: Reply

      Oh yes I like that visual overview with the calendar too. It’s a handy way to get a feel for what you have upcoming.

  3. Having nights away to focus on writing or blogging is great. Now I’m back at full time work I’m not really doing much blog stuff at night. Mostly social media crap and wasting time. I’m occasionally doing a little during a lunch break, as I can’t be bothered leaving my desk and this way I get a break from work stuff without having to go out. But I’ve taken to doing the bulk of my blogging on a Saturday – starting book reviews, jotting down ideas for posts and then I only have to go in and polish it off during the week, which is – at the moment – all I have the headspace for! I know that will improve as I settle back into work, but until then I’ve become a scheduler as well!

    1. Vanessa Smith says: Reply

      I can’t not leave my desk at lunch. I get so restless sitting all day! I’d love a sit/stand or treadmill desk. Somehow I can’t see work giving me one though!

  4. I keep meaning to try Evernote! At the moment I’m trying to keep at least a week ahead with my blog writing,but I don’t really schedule them, I post them when I’m here. I’ve found I do my best writing when I shut down all social media and don’t check my email until the post is written!

    Di from Max The Unicorn

    1. Vanessa Smith says: Reply

      I use Evernote mainly as a backup mechanism these days.

  5. I write on my laptop on the dining room table. I have a room with a desk, but I like being in a bigger area where I can be a part of things – and it has a nice view. Only having my husband and me at home means that it’s not noisy or distracting. I also schedule all my posts at least a couple of weeks ahead because:
    a) I work part-time and have lots of commitments that can get in the way
    b) I hate the stress of not having something written and prepared and ready to go.

    1. Vanessa Smith says: Reply

      A nice view helps writing a lot! Currently I squeeze it in whenever which isn’t quite as nice as deliberately sitting down to do it.

  6. Being at home, while I set up my own business I usually have the piece and quiet during the day to get the weekly blog post ready to go out. In saying that I now have to be a lot smarter with my time and have booked in time at the start of the week just for blog writing, to ensure that I’m not rushing at the last minute. I do have blogging calendar set up in outlook, where I mapped out the topics for the rest of the year. In saying that these are not set in stone and do get moved around or changed completely. The post that I use for the link ups is most often the one that has been published on my site the week before and that way I always have something to include.

    1. Vanessa Smith says: Reply

      Sounds like your system is working well for you 🙂

  7. Yeah I schedule too. I never know when work is going to go feral. I have Fridays off so spend half a day in book activities and a couple of hours scheduling posts. I keep a list of possible ideas in a journal & go from there. #TeamLovinLife

  8. Sounds like you’re very organised Ness! I schedule sometimes, but lately I’ve been battling to get anything done ahead of time. I do have a swipe file of post ideas which I sometimes use during my last minute scramble to get a post written 🙂 #TeamLovinLife

  9. You’re organised!
    I just blog at dawn for the most part. Whether I have something to write about or not. I somehow manage to pull something together. I have scheduled posts though if I know I’m travelling or going to be under the pump. But now that I’ve given myself permission not to have to blog everyday the scheduling thing is minimal. I just blog and press “publish” whenever I feel like it really.

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