Making Time

Probably the number one thing that keeps writers from writing is the fact that they don’t make time to do it. Myself included, it usually sounds something like this: “I can’t find any time to write.” Maybe a little more nasal, a little more whiny, but that's what it sounds like. "I can't find time."

Well, that’s what we say. We can’t find it, but the real matter is that we don’t make it.

Writing requires that you make the time. Not just that it’s a good idea to have a regular routine of writing from seven to eight o’clock every day, but that you have to do so in order to focus your creative energy in one direction and keep your writing/story/characters moving.
A lot of people have great story ideas, but don’t actually live the writing life. I know these people. They talk about their stories all the time. To them, the characters and what's going to happen are very real.

The reality check? An unwritten novel is the same thing as no novel at all.

The truly hardest part of writing for most people is getting the first draft down on paper from start to finish. Then, the sad realization kicks in that writing THE END on the last page means you are at the beginning of your job as a writer.

If you can’t make the time to write the first draft, how will you ever get through revisions which can take twice as long as the first draft if not more so?

The key to making the time is to have a set schedule, an appointment with yourself, and don’t let anything or anyone break that appointment.

Sure, things come up. You want to write from ten to midnight and the next thing you know the Stanley Cup final is in triple overtime and you are glued to your television. Or, instead of getting up at five in the morning to sit at your desk, your child throws up on you at four thirty. These things happen, but you must make up the appointment, not skip it.

With determination and an honest look at your schedule, you should be able to make time everyday to write. If you’re having a hard time figuring out a nice schedule, keep in mind a quote from Brian K. Vaughan I’ll paraphrase for you here: “Write more, do other shit less.”

How’s that for motivation!


When's your best writing time and how did you find it? Leave comments below.