By: Sally Murphy,
on 2/26/2008
This evening I was doing a little multi-tasking. On the computer, my FTP program was uploading new files to Aussiereviews. In the kitchen I had dinner underway, with rice boiling on the stove and chicken cooking in the oven. I had the television news on so I could catch the weather report (the Murphlets have a swimming carnival tomorrow). I was ducking in and out the back door to the washing line
By: Sally Murphy,
on 2/3/2008
The Murphlets have gone back to school today after the long Summer holidays. I love having my kids home for the holidays, but must confess to being happy to see them back at school, so I can get more writing done. And I think they were happy to be back at school, too, or at least acceptant of the fact that they were going there. So now the house will be quiet from 9 till 3, and I should have
By: Sally Murphy,
on 1/28/2008
One piece of advice I often give to new writers is to read books and articles about writing regularly. Of course, it would be easy to spend so much time studying such writing advice that one didn’t actually have time to write, but it is important to devote some time on a regular basis to hearing what works for other writers. No one can offer a formula that will exactly work for you, but at the
By: Bruce Black,
on 11/18/2007
Kelly Herold over at Big A little a posed an important question about writing the other day: I have a writing question for you all: How do you make space for writing? I don't mean physical space--not a room, a desk, a corner. I mean mental space. Every writer has to confront this question eventually, especially on days when time itself seems to shrink, leaving less and less time for writing.
By: Sally Murphy,
on 8/25/2007
Phew! It’s Sunday, the start of a new week and already I feel a bit overwhelmed by the week. It’s one of those weeks where I have got so much to get through and wonder how I can juggle it all. So, first off, I’ve made a list of what needs doing. 1. Finish edits on two non fiction reading book titles. 2. Mark two batches of assignments for my tutoring job. 3. Finish writing notes for performance
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By: Writing for Children,
on 8/13/2007
by Maurene J. Hinds, Contributing Editor
In today’s busy world, few of us have the luxury to spend hours pursuing a writing dream. There’s no such thing as finding time to write. You have to make the time! As with other priorities, if you want it bad enough, you’ll find a way to fit some writing time into your schedule. How do you do this?
First, you need to dispel some of the myths about writing. You don’t need huge chunks of time. Several focused, 15-minute sessions can be very productive over the course of days, weeks, and months. Can you expand that time to half an hour? Even better! Whenever you can squeeze in some time, do it.
Don’t wait for inspiration. One of the greatest myths about writing is that you have to feel fully inspired to write. While inspiration is great, it’s not a prerequisite. Writing is like any other skill. The more you practice, the better you get. Sitting down to write and producing something—anything—is better than not writing at all. Waiting for the muse is a great way to procrastinate and make excuses.
Now that you know two important rules (or non-rules), how else can you make the time to write? The following tips will help you spend more time writing and less time thinking about it.
1. Commit. If you want to be a writer, you have to write, plain and simple. Make writing a priority.
2. Share your commitment with others. Let your family and friends know that writing is important to you. Of course, you need to demonstrate this by writing. Once they see that you are committed, their level of support will likely increase.
3. Realize that some things may have to go, or at least be put aside. Most people can’t do it all. For some, even making fifteen minutes means that something else, such as vacuuming, is going to be put on hold. The house does not have to look perfect.
4. Keep your priorities in perspective. Yes, your children come first. So that means your writing time may need to happen when the kids are asleep. For many writers, this means getting up early, before everyone else, or staying up late after everyone else is asleep.
5. Give yourself mini goals. For some, a page a day is a reasonable goal. For others, it’s 500 words. Figure out a reasonable, yet still challenging goal, and stick to it.
6. Keep writing.
7. Turn off your inner critic. This is the voice that tells you your writing is no good. First, you need to get something on paper (or screen). You can call on this voice later when it’s time to revise. (Many writers find that early morning writing is the best writing time as far as keeping this voice quiet.)
8. Keep writing.
9. Don’t think about “big picture” issues such as whether or not the work will be published and where. This comes later. The top priority is getting those first drafts done. Then you can work on the other stuff (such as revising!).
10. Keep writing
As with other important things in life, writing takes time and effort. However, few things match the satisfaction of setting a goal, sticking to it, and watching your writing grow.
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Time to write, as much a question of self-discipline as of other commitments. It's always interesting to see what some of my familiar authors have to say about this, and these included Brooks, Konigsburg and Hopkins in your panel. Twelve hours a day for Brooks, wow, that's intense. He writes such a range of books, too, intense stories like "The Moves Make the Man," "What Hearts," and "Midnight
Jack,The Aeneid, indeed. Brooks is amazing.You've raised an interesting topic for a future post: which books do writers turn to for inspiration? Probably just as important a question as how a writer finds time to write.
Bruce: This is AWESOME! I'm linking to it now in part 3 of my roundup. Thanks :)
Kelly sent me. Great post!I find that the time I need to write varies with the kind of writing it is. Rough draft time is the hardest time to find, because it needs to be uninterrupted (and because I struggle with how slow it is.) Editing time is the easiest, because I can do it in little snatches, and I feel like I'm making progress the whole time. Poetry time is the most rewarding, because it
Kelly, thanks so much for starting the discussion!And Sara, many thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts. I love the way you describe poetry time... the idea of words being able to make time stand still. And, of course, the surprise of what appears on the page... sometimes when you least expect it.