How to Find Time to Write
I think we all know how hectic life can get, whether you're drowning in homework or struggling to squeeze ten minutes of alone time into everyone else's plans.
But when you're a writer, there's a major need to find peace within all that chaos--a time set aside just for your book. In fact, I'd say this is the most important thing to becoming a writer. Finding time may seem impossible at first. But you need to remember that it's not even exactly about finding time, it's more about making time. Here are three ways you can do that.
1. BE MINDFUL OF YOUR SCHEDULE
You're going to have to think about how a regular day goes for you. I'm guessing most if not all of you reading this will still be attending school--so add up the hours you spend in school. It's about seven (you're welcome), not including after-school clubs. However much time you spend in school or at work, set that time aside for only school and only work. An important thing to remember is that mixing your personal and professional life is a bad idea. And for now, your novel counts as personal. This means you shouldn't be putting your writing before homework, chores and other mandatory responsibilities. I just wanted to make that clear.
Now, the remaining five-ish hours left in your day, take or leave a bit for chores and after-school lessons, are open for you to squeeze in some time to write.
I know this step seems a little pointless, but taking the part of my schedule that's already unchangeable into account helped me a lot. I set it straight in my mind that although my novel means the world to me, I won't let it get in the way of my education. And, as I'll explain shortly, there are plenty of other parts of my day where I can focus on writing.
2. BRING A NOTEBOOK WITH YOU EVERYWHERE
Remember what I said in the post on writers' block--about writing your book on paper to copy it down later? This will be a lot like that. Get a pocket-sized notepad and pen, and stick them in your pocket or in a backpack. Carry them around with you every day. Keep them close, so that anytime a random idea pops into your head, you won't have an excuse to dismiss it. This is the one exception when it comes to mixing school with your writing, because you're not taking the entire document with you. The notebook will only be needed when inspiration strikes, so you could use it during lunch break or study hall.
Maybe it's already happened to you--out of nowhere you think of a great book title idea, or a funny line of dialogue. When I started writing these ideas down, I thought I would never use them. But the more I wrote in my notebook, the more ideas I got, and those random sparks of inspiration are still being used in my writing. I could almost say I treat my notebook like I would an oxygen tank. Sometimes I'll even write something down in the middle of the night, because a name or paragraph would come to mind and it wouldn't let me sleep. A little word of advice: if you think you'll remember something without writing it down--don't believe it. That's the one lie I've told myself most besides "just one more episode", and no matter how good I think my memory is, I always seem to forget what I wanted so badly to remember. And it frustrates me more than anything!
3. PICK A TIME AND STICK TO IT
Now you have times in your day where you know you won't be writing at all, and lots of little bits in your day where your writing can be helped. Next is to set a time where the writing can actually be done.
So, are you an early bird or a night owl?
Oh, my bad. That question came out of nowhere. Believe it or not, it matters if you're a morning person or a night person.Night owls are most active and most creative in the evenings, and early birds in the mornings. But what does that have to do with writing? Buckle up because this is about to get confusing.
Professional writers have said, and I read this just recently, that if you're an early bird you should be writing in the evenings, and if you're a night owl you should be writing in the mornings. This is so you can make way for the responsibilities in your life by using the times you're most active for school and work. When your brain says it's time to relax, and you're right on the brink of either waking up or getting tired, that's when you should force your brain to be creative.
I'm not going to say this is true or not. But, I did try it. I'm a serious night person, and the type to need at least five alarms to get me out of bed. I used this to my advantage and made my book into motivation. If I was going to leave for school at 8:00am, I would get up at 6:30pm and use that hour to work on my book. Surprisingly, it helped me wake up earlier and motivated me to use my time wisely. I'm still doing it now, and it's working really well.
Whether or not this works for you is entirely up to you. Feel free to try different things. You can write as soon as you get back from school, or you can write after supper. Whatever time works the best for you. Once you choose a time frame, you can be writing anywhere from 10-60 minutes at the least. And you're going to have to set it straight with those around you (parents, siblings, roommates..) that this is the time you've set aside for yourself. Make sure they know that any interruptions will lead to a slow and painful death.
Well, maybe not that far, but what I mean is--this new schedule should be absolutely rock-solid.
What worked for you? Did all of this help you? Feel free to let me know in the comments!
Keep your eyes peeled for a blog entry on why writing every day is even important, and another on all the best writing resources and websites you can use. I'll be updating the blog every Saturday!
Thanks for reading!
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