How do you keep life from interfering?

[JillStar]

How does everyone keep their personal life from interfering with the joy or task or goal of writing?

[LilacWine]

I do my writing while my husband is sleeping and my son is at work. I draw the blinds so the dogs can't find things to bark at and take the phone off the hook. When something disrupts the schedule, I'm pretty much outta luck. I try to at least make notes if I get terrific ideas while I'm unable to get to the keyboard.

It would help if I was able to hand write, but a neurological injury prevents me holding a pen or anything for more than a couple of minutes.

[bfsooner]

I have a slight advantage since I am single with no bipedal children (I'm owned by a cat). I do like getting up early in the morning to write before I go to work. Also, I like writing at night. If my friends or family call when I'm writing, I just tell them that I'm busy and go back to writing.

It is difficult when I have a lot of family obligations, though and when I was focused on training for my marathon. However with that over, I am able to focus again. Hence, my participation in the Word Count Challenges again.

[xcheck24]

close door.
lock.

[funkywriter3]

Unfortunately there is no way a teenager in high school can slow life b/c we have to keep going if we want a future. Unless I dropped out of school, but don't think the parents would approve.

[hyperfine]

I don't. I've been busy lately. Writing has suffered.

Must get better at this.

[siggidam]

impossible for me as well. i'm a stay at home mom of an autistic 5 year old monday thru friday and then i work retail on the weekends. my "spare time" consists of cooking dinner, doing laundry and sleeping. sadly, if i feel like crap (as i have lately) there's just no way i'll make the time to write.

[pengwenn]

Make your writing a part of the "life-interfering" part of your time. If you put it just above doing luandry on your To Do list and tell yourself you can't do the laundry until you've writtn for awhile then you might find some time. Of course you might end up wearing those old granny panties that you keep hidden in the bottom of your drawer in case of emergencies becase you didn't get the laundry down last night.

[LilacWine]

I do the opposite, if I finish a chore, I reward myself with time writing. One load of laundry = thirty minutes writing.

[charlesp]

Hmmm.... maybe I should adopt that Lilac, I'd win some points with the Mrs and with three kids it should make sure I get my writing in for the week.

When I was on second shift I would do my writing late at night after everybody went to bed. Now that I have to get up at 5ish to get out of the door in time for carpool in the mornings I've yet to find my time to carve out for writing.

[evil_angel]

i write only after midnight cuz i have insomnia! so usually thats not a problem cuz every thing would be already quiet! and i dont see anyone!
sometimes if i stay away for like 04:00am i sit in the living room to write! since i drive my parents crazy when i stay awake and make noise with the stuff!
finally! i also listen to something rock or hard rock!

[JillStar]

Of course you might end up wearing those old granny panties that you keep hidden in the bottom of your drawer in case of emergencies becase you didn't get the laundry down last night.

:shock: Get out of my drawers!!

Interesting the different ways people write... or don't write. When I hear about someone like siggidam and her situation, I think to myself "what's my excuse" cause I don't have one next to hers.

It has always been desire, prioritization, discipline and follow-through for me.

I have had the desire and the ability to prioritize... but then fall flat on discipline or follow-through. Unfortunately, if I don't see some fruit from my labors (ie discipline and follow-through) I end up losing the first thing... desire.

[Mlou]

I try to plan it out while I'm doing "mindless" work. Picking blueberries, sorting laundry, scrubbing spots on the floor (never the whole floor if I can help it ),
preparing vgbls for dinner...well, you get the idea. Then, I go in and get it into the computer at least roughly. But having the leisure of retirement, I'll admit I have more opportunity than most of you working folks.

[bfsooner]

I wanna pick blueberries. I love blueberries!!!

[siggidam]

Interesting the different ways people write... or don't write. When I hear about someone like siggidam and her situation, I think to myself "what's my excuse" cause I don't have one next to hers.

i probably just added that quote wrong, but thanks so much for saying that, jillstar. in the past i've had people tell me that my writing must not be important to me if i let daily life get in the way. i find that infuriating. sure, we all have to prioritize and hopefully writing gets tossed into the mix, but if it's a choice between something i want/enjoy doing or something for my son? there's no question. i chose to have him, he didn't choose a mother who writes.

i do always carry a notepad with me though. i write on my breaks at work if i'm channeling the muse and i always at the very least make time to jot notes for any new or ongoing story. i'm just one of those people who can't multitask. i'm incapable. so if i'm going to write i need silence (or at the very least no interruptions) and a good amount of time. 20 minutes before bed, as i yawn continuously wouldn't do me any good since i'd never remember or like what i'd come up with and trying to write while a 5 year old tries to read to you (the SAME book AGAIN) doesn't work either.

at any rate, thanks jill for understanding that just because writing isn't my first priority doesn't mean it's not important to me.

[Mlou]

Hey, siggi...i thought that went without saying. There is no ivory tower for 99% of writers. There's real life! We put first things first. Maybe an incredibly self-centered writer may set aside everything else but you have to wonder who suffers when he/she does. Do it your way, sig, and you'll do okay.

[Jamie Ford]

Sell your TV. Blockbuster doesn't exist. Don't read anything that isn't research for what you're working on. Forget the gym. Your dog doesn't need that walk. Automatic billpay is a good idea. Try to get all your work done at your day job finished by noon so you can write. Oh, yeah, and don't respond to questions on Wordtrip...

[charlesp]

Hey now! Though there IS some truth to what you've said... just don't forget that it's hard to have story fodder if you're not living a life (and if you're too ill to write you can't do much writing either).

[bfsooner]

Do we really want to read the stories written by those "ivory tower" authors. I think the lives we live breath...uh...life...into our stories. I know I didn't hardly write when my husband was very ill, and couldn't even think about writing after he died. But I am using those experiences now to enhance my writing. Look at Ms. Rowling for inspiration, she hardly had it easy when she wrote HP.

[xcheck24]

Hey now! Though there IS some truth to what you've said... just don't forget that it's hard to have story fodder if you're not living a life (and if you're too ill to write you can't do much writing either).

which actually holds true for all writing, even journalism style.

[JillStar]

at any rate, thanks jill for understanding that just because writing isn't my first priority doesn't mean it's not important to me.

Good point... I often beat myself up for not making writing high on my priority list, so much so that it ends up being put towards the bottom.

On the other hand, I COULD get rid of my tv... but seriously doubt that I will. The fact is, I am the one in control of what happens around me (mostly) and if I choose to write, I can find a way to do it. Right now I'm trying to chop my life into segments of time. Time in the morning to get ready for work, way TOOOO much time spent at work, time for myself at the gym if I can talk myself into it, time to make dinner, time to pick this kid up or drop this other one off, time to relax, time to spend with my boyfriend, time to sleep. But still... I know I have time in there to write... it's a matter of finding it and making it "time for writing".

[xcheck24]

well, it could be worse.
my JOB is to write. and it's a long, hard journey through the day to report and write. and edit other people's copy too.

so at the end of the day? or when I have free time? most of the time I don't want to write. i don't want to do anything except veg.

and this is part of what is killing me with my thesis!

[evil_angel]

thats mean! why dont u guys read it then decide

[charlesp]

A ) I have no idea what you're saying is mean evil_angel.

B ) I'm sure writing other things all day does make doing your own stuff when you're "off the clock" harder (you don't hear about doctors going home and performing surgery for fun do you?). I'd think that might have something to do with my recent drop-off of production (new job is more mentally intensive and I do more meetings with notes and documentation and discussions and such)... but I've always been wordtripping and posting and e-mailing a ton outside of my fiction writing, so I'm not sure I can claim that as an excuse for me.

[xcheck24]

yeah, but wordtripping and e-mailing isnt necessarily a drain on your brainpower like getting into an intensive piece of fiction.