I have the incredible luxury of being able to work full-time from home right now, although I have worked full-time outside of the home, so I understand needing to make time to scribble. When I was working, I wrote during my lunch break and after work (usually before bed). Whenever I had a free moment, I was scribbling.
The key is to find your rhythm. If you prefer to start your day scribbling, get up a few hours before the rest of your family does and get some writing done. If you're a night owl, stay up after everyone else has gone to sleep. Maybe you have a nice break in the middle of your day. Make sure you have a pad of paper and a pen in your bag, and you'll be set.
Of course, you don't have to limit yourself to blocks of time, either. As I mentioned, I wrote during lunch. But when I was an admissions counselor and traveling to schools to recruit students, I also scribbled while I was waiting for students to arrive, or while I was eating dinner at restaurants (alone) while on the road. Keeping a little journal in my briefcase was a very, very smart idea for me!
The problem comes when people who have busy schedules use it as an excuse to not write. They claim they can't write because they have work to do, or because they have a family to care for, or because dinner needs to be cooked. Everyone has obligations outside of the craft, but everyone has the same twenty-four hours in a day. If writing is your passion, you won't wait to find time to write. You'll make time to write.
Kell says:
It's harder to write when you have other demands on your time. But if you want it bad enough, or if your characters won't leave you alone, you'll find a way.
Really, that's what it comes down to in the end. If you're a writer, you make time to write. Many, many writers have full-time jobs and write on the side to share their stories. And it works.
So make it work for you.
Oh, NP, you speak to my soul! The time thing is kicking my booty right now, but I have a hunch I might miss the crunch when I am finally writing full-time. Jack Heffron talks about this in The Writer's Idea Book, referencing an article in which a man pointed out that skyscrapers were designed by people who had limited space to work with . . . the point being that our obstacles force us into creativity and make us work harder . . . whether we're lacking time, space, resources, or whatever. Sometimes I worry that when I am writing full time, I won't get anything done because I won't have that "I need to work hard every free moment" mentality.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, all this to say, thanks for this post, and for making the very important point that lack of time is not an adequate excuse for those of us who claim to be serious.
I'm so glad you liked the post!
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean by your concerns about working as a full time writer. Scheduling is one of my biggest obstacles! It makes me happy I have Bean to keep me busier now!