At a writer’s meeting the other day, an author was asked what the best piece of advice she’d give her younger self, and it mimicked what I’d tell myself if I knew then what I know now.
“Finish the damn book.”
She said she spent years putzing around, doing other things, not writing, wasting time. She worked full time but ended up wasting a lot of time, and I could relate to everything she said. I, too, spent years putzing around. Sometimes I catch myself still trying to hang on to this dreadful habit. Oh my, I had a long, hard day at work and I’m brain dead. There’s just too much other stuff going on right now.
Yep, putzing around.
She didn’t truly start pursuing publication until after she was able to retire from her full-time job, and as much as I’ve told myself I might ever be truly clear-headed enough to keep writing until after I retire from the job I’m at now (I have another five years and I’m eligible) the fact is I just don’t want to wait that long.
And I shouldn’t wait that long to pursue something I love.
So I balance the two. NaNoWritMo (NaNo for short, which means National Novel Writing Month) has helped me get back into a writing routine after all the work involved in getting my first novel published and the other three in the series edited and ready to submit. The goal is to complete a 50,000 word manuscript in one month. For me, that’s a first draft since my novels are generally longer, but I can get a first draft at 50,000 words. Still, it’s a lot of writing and a lot of pages! I love it, and hate it, but even if I only get three pages out of my goal of ten, I feel pretty good about my production.
Again, it’s a balance game.
Many writers hold down a full time job, and many in addition to children and the myriad things that go along with raising children. So what’s a writer to do? Well, you know, get up earlier. You can spare fifteen minutes. Write on your lunch break.
You make time to do what you love.
My job, like many, can be emotionally draining. My mental state sometimes when I get home from work is overtaxed. That’s when I should get lost in my writing, but it isn’t always easy. The transition isn’t always easy.
Exercise, yoga, walking, photography. There are many healthy ways to make that transition, but sometimes it takes hours, the rest of my brain cells are depleted for the day, and I’m just ready for bed or a good snuggle on the couch with TV or a book.
That’s why I believe mornings are the best time to write. And when I get into my funk and don’t get up in the mornings, it makes the rest of my day really bad. It makes me less able to handle the things that pop up at work.
But again, we gotta make time to do the things we love. Whether it’s getting up earlier, staying up later, or just choosing not to “putz around”.