How to find time to write
Squeezing writing in around other commitments
We’re coming to the end of January now, and if you’re anything like me, you might find those new year’s resolutions are already starting to wane. So how can you keep your promise to yourself to write more, when work, family and general life seems to be taking up more and more time?
TUTORED COURSES: Simply Self-Publish with Debbie Young (10% discount for members)
Join us on this 10-week, accessible tutored course where you’ll learn how to successfully self-publish and market your own novel. This is perfect for writers with a polished manuscript, who are ready to take it to readers.
This week at Jericho Writers:
MEMBER EVENTS: New Ideas hour and the Crazy Busy Cure (Member exclusive)
Join me on 27 January for an hour of writing exercises based around children’s stories. We also have an open event with Zena Everett on how to find time to write on 31 January – bring your friends!
ONE-TO-ONES: Last slots for January (10% discount for members)
… and booking now for February. We still have slots with the team at Ki Agency, Megan Carroll from Watson Little, and Charlotte Merritt and Florence Rees (who are both seeking non-fiction, so if that’s your jam then get them before they’re gone).
MASTERCLASS: Finding the time to finish your book (Member Exclusive)
Bestselling author (and busy parent) Holly Seddon shows you how to break your work into bite-sized pieces, overcome hurdles and squeeze productive writing from the tiniest slivers of time.
#IndieAuthorChat: Self-Publishing Q&A
Join in for this open Q&A session on Twitter tomorrow (Wednesday 26 Jan, 20:00 GMT) with successful indie-author & ALLi ambassador Debbie Young. She’ll be debunking common self-publishing myths, so follow the hashtag tomorrow and say hi. If you’re interested in our Simply Self-Publish course, now is a great time to ask your questions to the tutor herself.
BLOG: Writing and Burnout
Finding the motivation to write can be exhausting and frustrating – and we all experience burnout at some point in our creative careers. In this guide, we examine what writer burnout means, offer tips on how to avoid burnout as a writer, and hopefully, help you rediscover the joy of writing if you’re struggling with it.
Finding time to write
There are a lot of forces at work to stop us from writing books, but one of the trickiest ones I’ve found is time. If – like me – you are juggling your writing around a day job, family responsibilities and grappling with – *gestures around wildly* – the world, you might find that your writing plans are the first to go out the window.
Sometimes – that’s completely fine. When life gets hard, sometimes there are more important things to concentrate on than your word count. And I say this, as it’s important to recognise that you are a human being and not a word machine. It’s okay to take a break. It’s okay not to write, and you shouldn’t feel guilty if you need that time and space.
For the former, it might help to redefine how you write. I know writers who have written brilliant novels on their phones. Words can be dictated or written on loose bits of paper on a train. For me, I find routine can be immensely helpful, and writing immediately after work before I’ve had a chance to step away from my computer has helped my word count creep slowly upwards this month.
If it’s a lack of motivation or confidence that’s holding you back, know that you’re not alone. We all feel this from time to time (okay, most of the time). The trick is to not let it freeze you. Someone told me recently to stop seeing motivation as something that’s needed to act – but rather that acting leads to motivation. Sitting down and forcing yourself to write anything for five minutes – even if you have no idea what that is – will help you feel more motivated and confident than doing nothing at all.
If you’d like to do some fun writing games this week (and writing SHOULD be fun!) then do join me for the New Ideas Hour on Thursday. The open session on 31 January also promises to be procrastination-bustingly-brilliant. Hope to see you there!
Sarah J
Plus, don’t miss:
Full Manuscript Assessment (10% member discount)
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Creative Non-Fiction tutored course with Sam Jordison (10% member discount)
A 6-week crash course into a new non-fiction project, with an expert tutor and an inspiring reading list. Develop, test and really work through your ideas, and learn how to hone in on your subject, write your manuscript and nail your pitch. Booking now for 2022.
Success Stories – Call for Interviews
One of the best parts of helping writers is seeing them thrive and their projects come to fruition. If you’ve hit your goals – getting an agent, a book deal, effectively self-publishing – with a bit of help from us, we’d love to hear from you as part of our success stories blog series. Please contact our marketing assistant Esther on e.vincent@jerichowriters.com for more details.
If anyone here has the time to read all these marketing posts, for sure they also have time to write, no?