Why productivity is personal
Writers love to share the backstory of their book: where, when and how they were struck by a spark of inspiration. Bec recently returned to the exact spot where she had her lightbulb moment, a puzzle that led to an obsession with writing productivity, My lightbulb...
Sally Wainwright’s writing process
Chris chats to top TV dramatist Sally Wainwright about starting out, 2 am starts and her new book deal, and shares her tips for getting your first TV commission (from 2014). BAFTA-winning UK writer, producer and director Sally Wainwright is best known for creating...
The perfect routine doesn’t exist: imperfect advice from Oliver Burkeman
Oliver Burkeman believes current thinking about productivity is a trap. There is no such thing as the perfect time management approach or the ideal writing routine. Instead, he argues that accepting the limited time we have leads to liberation. Once we embrace our...
Being a Writer – Getting it Written: A Conversation with Oliver Burkeman
To celebrate the launch of ‘Written: How to Keep Writing and Build a Habit That Lasts’ co-authors Bec Evans and Chris Smith explore what it means to be a writer with bestselling writer Oliver Burkeman, who wrote the foreword to the book. You can watch the video on...
Written: a quick introduction
Our new book Written: How to keep writing and build a habit that lasts is out this January. So, what is it, why did we write it and how will it help people? (And if you're here to find out how you can win a proof copy tomorrow, it's by joining our newsletter). Writing...
How writing sprints work: the nuts and bolts
A 7-Day Writing Sprint is a coaching program designed to help you fast-forward a piece of writing over a week. Unique to Prolifiko, our sprints are structured in a way that help you reflect on your progress day-by-day so you start to find a few tactics and approaches...
Getting to Written
If you've followed Prolifiko and our work for any amount of time, you might have figured out that Bec and I are married. If you haven’t, well, now you know. It's not something we normally write about because our work is about you. But for this one time, I’m...
How to be a writer with David Quantick
David Quantick is an Emmy-winning television writer, a radio broadcaster, novelist, journalist and author of the best-selling writing manuals How to Write Everything and How To Be A Writer which features interviews with famous writers, performers and industry...
The power of ‘if’: how imagining the future helps writers
What-if thinking is a powerful tool for writers. It helps novelists create new worlds to shine a light on how we live now. Speculating about the future is not just the preserve of science fiction writers - it can be helpful for all writers as they plan their writing...
The resilience to keep writing
I thought I knew about resilience. For the last decade I’ve been studying writing habits and how writers keep going. After a bereavement, I started to see things differently. It turns out I was wrong about what it means to be resilient. This follow up post considers...
Grief induced writer’s block – how to get through it
How do you cope with grief induced writer’s block? Academic and researcher Hilary Potter describes the processes she went through recently following a miscarriage. She hopes her experience will help others. Before Summer 2021 was a season of thwartings, of trauma and...
How to write in challenging times – the alchemy of gentle productivity
What does it mean to be productive? How can writers keep going when it feels like everything is stacked against them? Novelist, essayist and short fiction writer Anna Vaught shares the alchemy of gentle productivity that helps her keep writing. Six years ago, I...