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3 Tips for Writing When Life is Chaotic and Crazy


By Jody Hedlund, @JodyHedlund

It's that time of year again, when the kids are back to school, fall activities crank into gear, and the schedule gets flipped upside down and shaken around a bit.

As I stare at my calendar at the month of September and continue to add things to the crowded round-up, I can't keep from wondering how in the world I'll be able to carve out enough concentrated writing time.

In addition to home teaching, I'll be leading a children's writing class for a co-op. And then of course between my five children we have dance, guitar and piano lessons, swim team, basketball, co-op classes, literature group, children's choir, youth group, and the list goes on.

So yes, during this time of year, time is on my mind, particularly the busyness of it. In fact, I just noticed that recently I've been subconsciously pinning a number of quotes on Pinterest about the use of time.

Like this one: "Whatever you want to do, do it now. There are only so many tomorrows."

And this one: "All we have to do is decide what we're going to do with the time that is given us."

Here's another: "Show up. Even when you don't feel like showing up."

This is my favorite: "There are seven days in the week, and someday isn't one of them."

I love all of the above quotes. They're all so applicable to my crazy fall. In fact, they're helpful to think about for any of us dealing with changing and chaotic schedules and wondering how we'll be able to find solid writing time.

Here are three things we can keep in mind:

1. We can't put off our writing because we're busy. There really are only so many tomorrows. We never know when our time on earth will be up. And let's face it, we're always going to be busy. Once we're done with our current busy stage of life, we'll start the next busy one. We'll find different things to do, places to go, and activities that will fill our time.

I'm learning that I can't wait until I cross off everything else on my to-do list before I start my writing time every day. Because honestly, my to-do list is never-ending. Instead, I have to choose to ignore it for a little while each day.

We can't wait until that someday when we finally have a block of free time before we decide to write. Because as the saying goes, someday isn't a day of the week and will likely never come. Instead, we just have to make the time to write . . . now. We can usually squeeze in time for the activities that are most important to us. And if writing is something we want badly enough, we can fit it into our schedules, somewhere.

2. When we sit down to write, we have to use that time wisely. This is something I struggle with constantly. When I finally manage to grab writing time, I have to battle against the urge to check email or twitter or facebook.

It's all too easy to tell ourselves, we're only going to read a couple of blogs before we start working on our WIPs. And the next thing we know, twenty minutes out of our coveted hour of writing time is gone.

Whether we have 30 minutes or an hour or a day, we have to make a conscious choice to turn off the distractions, tune out the noise, and focus on the page that lies before us.

3. Finally, we have to show up at the screen, even when we don't feel like it. Ever notice how young children get excited about new activities? Before my youngest daughter started piano lessons, she was waiting anxiously for the day when she would finally get to play the piano like her siblings. But now that she's been doing it a while, the newness has worn off and there are days when she would much rather do something else than sit down and practice.

And the same is true of most writers. We all feel that initial excitement when we start writing or when we begin a new book. But eventually the thrill wears off under the daily pressure to write something.

If you write only on the days you feel like it, you either won't finish your book or it will take you forever. The only way to complete a book is to write on the days you feel like it AND to force yourself to write on the days you absolutely don't want to.

What about you? How's your fall shaping up? Busy? Chaotic? Crazy? How do you keep writing when life conspires to keep you from it?

_____________________________________________________________

Want to learn some of my deepest, darkest secrets? ;-) During the month of September, I'll be sharing secrets about myself during my "Fun Secrets" Blog Tour. On each blog stop, I'll also be giving away a signed copy of my newest release, Unending Devotion:

Monday, Sept. 3 Secret #1:  My greatest struggle during my childhood. Melissa Jagears’s blog

Tuesday, Sept. 4 Secret #2: The secret source of my writing inspiration. Carol Garvin’s blog

For a list of all my secrets, check out my Events Page!

30 comments:

  1. This is an excellent post, Jody. There are a lot of people I know who WANT to write, but feel like if they push themselves then it wasn't meant to be. Writing is ALL ABOUT pushing yourself. As you say, sure, it's fun at first, but there are hard days. And you've got to push through. Plus, some of my best days -- days when I feel like I've accomplished the most -- have started off as difficult days. But I didn't give up. As Tom Hanks' character says in A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN: "The hard is what makes it great."

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    1. Hi Dina!

      Yes, we definitely have to push through those difficult days! I, too, have accomplished some of my best writing on the days when I kept going. Sometimes it takes those hours of slogging before the words really start to flow! And I LOVE that line from a League of Their Own. SO inspiring and SO true!

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  2. No more sleeping in with the kiddies. Excellent post. =)

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    1. I'm totally re-vamping my sleeping schedule for the fall too! Less sleep for sure! :-)

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  3. Gosh Jody, you just hit every concern I have for this FAll and how I should handle them. Just do it.

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    1. I always seem to have a meltdown in the fall when I look at my schedule! But somehow, I always seem to make it all work. I think the key is just writing amidst the chaos and not waiting until life is perfect.

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  4. Great advice! I have set a word count goal of 400 words every day—it's small, so it's doable, but if I stay on track I can have my first draft finished by December. That's a goal I can do.

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    1. I have a daily word count goal too. And I've found that it eventually all adds up!! We just have to stick to the goal! And I agree, the more doable we can make it for our circumstances, the better.

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  5. I always find it interesting when someone in the universe has the same inspiration around the same time. I just wrote my own version of how to get things done with a million things going on. I like your guidelines and think they are spot on.

    Article here

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    1. Like I said, it's THAT time of year! :-) I think we're all trying to figure out how to make it all work!

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  6. My fall's shaping up to be hectic. My husband's coming home from deployment and we're planning another move crosscountry. So it looks like I will definitely be writing under pressure :-)

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    1. Oh wow, Brandi! Your fall sounds very hectic. On the one hand, I'm sure you're excited to have your husband home! But on the other, a move is always a stressful time. I wish you all the best as you write on! :-)

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  7. Jody,

    SHOW UP! That's my mantra for everything these days. Even showing up not as prepared as I'd like to be is better than hiding my head under the covers. Besides, it's a great practice in humility to bump my head against my inability to DO IT ALL!!!!!

    Things like word counts goals, weekly (not daily) to-do lists, etc. are absolutely necessary for me, that's for sure.

    Thanks for the gentle reminder,
    Becky

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    1. Hi Becky,

      Some days I find myself showing up not as prepared as I'd like to be too. But for a planner like myself, I think God is stretching me to not have to be quite so on top of everything! It truly is a lesson in humility! And I agree, word count goals keep me going every week. Even if I fall short because of the busyness, at least I've written something. And eventually it all adds up!

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  8. hmmmmmm.... I too just posted on this topic, but with a different opinion FOR ME! hahaha

    http://tomsmiscramblings.blogspot.com/search/label/writing

    Like I said on the blog, whatever works and makes you happy, go with THAT... not just what others do.

    Keep up the good work!

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  9. You know, in the four years since I've started writing, I don't think my house has ever been truly clean. It's not that I avoid cleaning all together, but I take time to write no matter what. And my poor house seems to suffer the worst from my writing time. :-)

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    1. I'm with you on this! But who was ever remembered for their pristine housekeeping anyway? I have two kids under two so when I do clean/tidy it's all undone within half a day. So long as the house isn't a serious health-hazard or totally depressing to live in, it'll do.

      Since having my two kids I've written end edited nearly three novels. People ask me how - my answer: I don't do enough housework - but it's enough for me!

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  10. #2 caught me procrastinating on finally getting started on my novel again....by blog reading. I went outside without the internet and did what I was supposed to be doing. :)

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  11. Great post. Your life sounds somewhat like mine--I also juggle homeschooling and a publishing contract, and carving out daily time for writing is a big part of making it doable. (I also make up lost writing time on weekends.)

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  12. Distractions are the worst, and will take you away from your writing if you let them suck you in by even the thinnest margin.

    And great advice about "we're always going to be busy." I've found that writing is like going to the gym - the more you skip it, the easier it becomes to skip the next day as well.

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    1. So true! Writing is very much like going to the gym or exercising. Once we skip, it just gets easier to skip the next time! Thanks for that thought!

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  13. It is the eternal struggle for writers, isn't it? Especially those who are parents or who have a demanding day job.

    My main method of keeping my eye on the ball is using writing dares. Daily reporting, or at least weekly, to a group of like-minded writers keeps you honest. I've used A Round Of Words In 80 Days, which is not only ongoing and year around (a week or so off each quarter) but it lets you set your own goals so that your goals fit your life.

    Lately I've been using blogging deadlines, though, and that works better than anything I've done. I'm publishing what I write on the blog as a serial, and that public deadline really keeps me in line.

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  14. Yes, it's the day job! I'm a freelancer by day, and my job is the way my roommate and I pay rent. I struggle with feeling guilty for writing when I should be working on my clients' books to pay the bills...Any suggestions?

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    1. Have you considered the possibility of setting aside a certain amount of time each day just for YOUR writing, like an hour? Maybe if you give yourself permission to do it every day for an hour, and then after that hour get to work on your other projects, perhaps you won't feel so guilty? Just a thought! Or you could do your other work for a couple of hours and then reward yourself with 30 minutes of your writing. I think the key is building the time into your schedule for both!

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  15. I've been looking at this idea of finding time and also of finding balance--that elusive thing. I am inspired by a TED talk where the speaker (Nigel Marsh) asks people to not look at balance in terms of a day. I am now thinking about it in the terms of a week. That's a much better time frame for me.

    And, I pay a lot of attention to my mood swings and energy spikes. Certain times during the month, I am in a much more organizational mood. Instead of forcing myself to organize the other times, I just save it for that week. Instead of battling my hormones, I am trying to work with them. :)

    If I sit down at the computer and open up my document, I will get work done.

    I know some of this is slightly off-topic to your blog post, but this post made me make tons of connections. Writing is like having a baby. There's never a great time. You just have to jump in and do it!

    Thanks for the thoughtful post!

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    1. Hi Heather,

      I think taking a weekly approach is also a good one. I set a weekly goal of writing 7000 words. But I generally break my goals down into daily bit-size chunks to help keep me on track for the week. But if I do less one day and more another, that's okay.

      Glad the post resonated!

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  16. I couldn't have come across this article at a better time! All week my head has been swimming with the thought, "How in the heck do I fit 'my' writing in to the schedule? Life is pretty crazy, but you nailed it when you said, "We can't put off our writing because we're busy." Thank you, Jody!

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    1. Hi Lissa!

      I honestly can't think of a recent time when my life hasn't been crazy! So, yes. Most of the time we just have to just do it anyway! Wishing you all the best!

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