Where Did My Time To Write Go?

Since school has started, I’ve found that writing has been pushed to the back burner of my life. In between planning  lessons for my kidos, grading their assignments, and completing the school district’s required professional development, I barely have time to read much less write. This is heartbreaking for me. Writing is very much a skill that has to be practiced and honed, and the thought of losing something I’ve worked so hard to gain is gut wrenching.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s been in this situation. I think the trick is to purposefully set aside time for it. Like a long distant relationship, it will take a lot of work and commitment. So I’ve come up with a plan.

1.       Write a little bit every day. It can be a page, a paragraph, or an entire story, but some writing has to happen every day. A little is better than none.

2.       Surround myself with writers. A community of people who are continuously writing and encouraging you to write is inspiring. Seeing them improve will make you want to improve.

3.       Have a friend keep you accountable. When you have someone who is willing to lovingly nag you, you are more likely to write, if nothing else but to make your friend shut their trap.

4.       Have an end goal in mind. If you have a deadline and an overall goal, then you have something to strive for. It’s much easier to let things fall by the wayside if you don’t have a goal.

5.       Set up a reward for yourself. While the thought of being published and seeing your name in print should be reward enough, we are of an age of instant gratification. Giving yourself a little treat if you write every day for a week will perk up your writing habit. Not to mention, you deserve it!

Here is to another great year of learning and writing! Have any of you felt this way? Please let me know if you have any tips or tricks that could make finding time to write easier. We could all benefit!