First, I want to thank Nikki for hosting me on her blog! Thanks, Nikki, I appreciate you thinking of me.
Nikki and I both have in common that we’re parents, and as any parent knows, it can be hard to find time for anything other than the everyday tasks we have to do concerning our kids and our homes (and work, and, and, and…). When you’re trying to find time to write, life can easily get in the way, especially when kids are involved.
So how do you find time to write? You can’t get published if you never write. Between school events, sports events, food preparation, chauffeuring, bedtime, homework, and spending quality time with your kids, not to mention constantly picking up after them, it’s nigh impossible to find enough time to sit down and clear your mind enough to let the creativity flow.
There are ways, but they’re different for each person. For me, I’ve discovered that my daughter is happy sitting in my office and “working” alongside me. Usually that involves coloring, playdough or bringing a bunch of toys in to play with. Sometimes she watches a movie or I let her play games like Starfall or Reader Rabbit on the computer for a bit. If she’s in the room with me, I can even have headphones on to block out some of the noise she makes playing.
When both kids are home (my son is in 1st grade), I find it a little harder to become completely engrossed in my writing, but I can get some writing or editing done while they play in their playroom next to my office. There are more limitations on these days, such as not being able to listen to music or block outside stimuli, but any writing/editing time is valuable, and I’ll take what I can get.
The trick is finding a solution that works for both you and your child(ren). Make it fun. If you simply tell them they have to behave and sit in your writing space, that’s not going to work. If you find that solution, though, and you make it something they can be excited about, it can be as easy as say
Shannon: It's nice meeting you, and thanks to Nikki for making it possible. I remember the challenges of having a small child back when I was running my illustration business. Life has changed now that our son is an adult. As a matter of fact he just served as my first guest blogger and I was very proud, even though he gave out more information about me than necessary. His post was called, Motoring with the Chatterbox. As for writing, no one wants to write, as the saying goes, but everyone wants to have written....
ReplyDeleteHi Stephen. How fun and exciting to have your son be your first guest blogger, though funny that he gave out some extra information. That's just one of the many things kids are for, right? Great to meet you!
ReplyDeleteMy kids are grown now, but there is always something to work around. I am now caregiving for my parents. So there's always this challenge of working out a system. But as long as we value writing, we will find ways to make it work. Nice post!
ReplyDeleteRuth, so true. Before it was kids, it was work and school, and anything else that came up that had to be done.
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