Writing and Working

Writing is work. But so is being employed 40+ hours a week. In this post I am going to talk some about how I find both time and motivation for writing after working ten hour shift most days of the week.

Finding time is difficult. After work I only have five hours of free time before I need to go to bed in order to get up at six the next morning. What I do is I come back to my Brother and Sister-in-Law's and do whatever non-writing related things I have to do. Then, when I know I cannot be interrupted, I just sit down, put on some music, and write. The thing most damaging to a good time of writing is being interrupted.

Methods for finding time:

1. Schedule a specific time to write and stick to it! Make it as important as a meeting on your schedule with a dead uncle who has left you millions!

2. Make sure anything you need to do that will distract you from writing is done.

3. Scatter your writing days throughout the week. You don't have to write every evening or whatever free time you have. You can if you want. But if you choose specific writing days you can get the other things you have to do (apart from work) done on non-writing days.

Finding motivation after a full work day makes finding time look easy. Some days I have come home with sore feet, a terrible headache, and a knot in my back. I sit down, glance at my computer, and then pick up a book instead. Now I love reading books, but should I read someone else's book when I should be writing my own?


I have developed a few methods to gaining motivation:

1. I set my laptop on top of books I want to read. This provides me with a physical reminder that I should write when I pick up the laptop.

2. I open my most recent writing project, shut down my web browsers, turn on some music, and just start writing. I don't worry about the quality of what I am typing. I just type. I lose myself in the story I am telling.

3. I think about my dreams. I think about how practicing writing will help me achieve my dreams. This motivates me because I value my dreams. But dreams don't just come true, they are to be worked for.