I wanted to mention "Making Time" today. I haven't had to deal with this issue in a while. See, for the past year and a half I have been living the dream... not working, just writing. Except that I didn't really take advantage of the time while I had it. I was distracted by other things and allowed much of the time I could have devoted to writing to slip away.
Now that I am doing an internship in the City three days a week (on week two and it's going GREAT!) I am suddenly reminded of the value of time. I have less time for posting and less time for writing because other things are taking up the space (you know, like groceries, cooking meals, walking the dog, etc.).
It's only two weeks in, but I'm already worrying about how my creative outlets will suffer from neglect. Am I over reacting? This past weekend I did put down 900 words towards my WIP (in the new POV, too!). And that's huge! Because I have been stalling and recently got a bump of inspiration. But I wonder if that is an exception to the rule and if the urge to create won't be drowned out by the lazy monster or the "I have so many other necessary things to do" monster. I know I have to build better habits, but I'm a little at a loss as to how to do it without creating a crusty layer of guilt that I have to break through every time I want to write.
Ugh. Does anyone else ever feel this way? Damned if you do and damned if you don't... It's honestly one of my biggest barriers to moving forward with my writing, I think.
New post with some rambling about my internship on Friday. Thanks for listening.
I feel like your internship will keep the creative juices flowing and that it's easier to get things done when you're already on a roll.... :) You'll be great and I can't wait to read it!
ReplyDeleteIt's tough learning how to balance the various tasks and errands with writing but give it time. It'll happen.
ReplyDeleteOne nice thing about not having enough time is that you learn to REALLY make use of the time you DO have.
ReplyDeleteThis morning, I made notes at stop lights on my way to work. I wrote part of a scene at lunch. And tonight, once kids are bathed, homeworked, and in bed, I will spend another two hours writing (and flipping loads of laundry).
I have also discovered the joy of the egg timer. We set the timer for one hour this weekend and everyone pitched in and cleaned like crazy to abnormally loud music. When it was over, we spent the rest of the day doing "our thing." (Disclaimer: I did periodically load and unload the washing machine, but other than that...nothing else got cleaned all weekend. Seriously.)
I agree...it is all about balance, and what is important. I figure, someday I can either tell my grandkids, "Honey, my house was always SPOTLESS!" or I can tell them, "Come over here and let Grandma read you the book she wrote!"
I choose option "B"!
I don't have this worry right now, but that's only because I'm not working. If I was working, I seriously do not know how I would ever get any writing or blogging done. Both are such a time suck. As it is, I spend too much time blogging and not enough writing my book. So I feel your pain in that respect.
ReplyDeleteYou know, the most interesting thing about this is that I'm busy. I'm so busy, my hair is busy (usually it's busy being a messy blob to shame a gorgon). What I find is that the little scraps of time are still there. If you want it enough, you find them.
ReplyDeleteI can honestly say that I write no faster when given a full week without any commitments as I do in a week with a hundred things to do. I don't know why, but it is the truth.
There are times when everything bundles together and there are literally not enough hours in a day and every scrap of it is productive and still I can't get what I want done, but even as crazy busy as I am, that's pretty rare.
And strangely, I find that a little structure in my life boosts productivity ten fold. It's crazy. The more I have to do, the more I do.
Still, it's a hard balance, so good luck.