Finding the Time to Write

If you've ever attended a meeting of a writer's group, you've heard something like this: "I didn't get much writing done this month, because I've been so busy." Not many people have the luxury of writing full-time when they're working on their first novel. Somehow, though, new authors are popping up on the shelves every month. How do they find the time?

Some people will tell you that you have to carve time out for your writing. Unfortunately, they want you to carve that time out from sleep or other essential activities. Suggestions like, "Wake up two hours before the kids do and go to sleep two hours after your husband," or "Skip your lunch break at work and spend that time writing, instead," seem like a good, common sense approach to finding time for your writing. They might even work, for a little while. But how are you supposed to write with severe sleep deprivation, or when you're so hungry you can't see straight?

Instead of trying to take time out from necessary moments in your day, examine your schedule. Do you usually spend a couple of hours a night watching television? What about knitting, or scrap booking, or going out with friends? Obviously, you don't have to give up those hobbies forever in order to write, but you might find that instead of your usually Tuesday night dose of reality television, you can work on your synopsis or finish plotting a chapter.

You can also make the most of the small increments of time that are stolen by mundane daily tasks. Buy an inexpensive digital voice recorder and dictate your story while making your morning commute or washing dishes. Leave a notebook in the bathroom instead of a magazine. And parents know how frustrating it is to have to watch every grade perform in the school choir concert; take a pen and surreptitiously jot down dialogue and scenes when your kiddo isn't on stage.

Many people simply feel like they don't have time, or shouldn't take time for their writing, because it takes time away from other things. Let's say you're one of the lucky few who has plenty of time to write. Maybe you're a stay-at-home mom whose children are in school. Maybe you have a job that doesn't follow you home. Whatever the case, you have no problem finding time to write... it's just that if you have time to write, you have time to get the house cleaned, or visit that friend you hardly ever get to see... No one wants to live as a recluse in a filthy house, obviously. Still, there are things that can go untended every now and then as a sacrifice to your writing.

Were you raised to believe that if you're not working hard, doing something for someone else, you're just screwing around? Many people would rather put their needs last, thinking, "I'll write when I'm done with the rest of these things." Unfortunately, "to-do" lists grow longer and longer, and you never quite reach the point where there is nothing left to do but write.

If this is your problem, you need to train yourself to think differently about your writing, and yourself. This isn't an easy solution. You need to examine why you feel your writing isn't important enough to take occasional priority over household chores or other hobbies. However, you can make a good first step by doing a simple exercise. When you're cleaning the house or doing another chore, set a kitchen timer for fifteen minutes. When the timer goes off, stop what you're doing and set it again. Now, write for fifteen minutes. When the timer goes, go back to your chore. You might find that you'd rather be writing-- and you feel you've accomplished more-- at the end of the fifteen minutes writing.

Writing is a one-man job. Once you start respecting yourself as a writer, you'll find that it isn't as difficult as you first thought to find the time to make it happen.