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Showing posts with label finding the time to write. Show all posts

Don't Have Time To Write? guest post by Ed Lin

I’ll be honest. I look a little askance at people who say they want to write but they just don’t have the time.

If you feel compelled to write, you can’t really do anything else. Not happily, anyway. Think about all those hours you use to binge on your favorite series. Or scrolling through social media. Or...reading blogs about writing. Um, yeah.

In the salad of my youth, before I even had a novel-length manuscript, I would try to write short stories. Sometimes, about once a month, I would get an idea that was so strong in my mind I wouldn’t be able to sleep until I had written at least a first draft of it.

My point is that it’s not really a question of having enough time to write. If your desire to write is strong enough, you will find the time. Maybe you’ll eat lunch at your desk at your job so that during your deemed lunch hour, you’ll hunker down in a conference room or nearby cafe to write on a legal pad or laptop. Maybe you have a kid who wakes up at 5:30 in the morning and you have to make breakfast, pack a lunch and take her to school. Get up at 4 and do the writing beforehand (have some coffee saved in the fridge). Maybe type away late at night after everyone in the house has gone to bed.

I have done all those things. I still do some of them. There is no wrong way to do things when you want to write.

Oh, I should also add that hand in hand with writing comes reading. Always be reading at least one book. Don’t have time to read? See the above. If you truly love writing, you love reading. You also love going to author events. If a writer you like is visiting a store near you, go to it. You don’t necessarily have to buy her book--only if you want to ask questions one-on-one after the event.

All writers generally want to help aspiring ones, even though sometimes we seem to be not in great moods. Why? Because all along the path to publication, writers who were more established helped us out. Someone responded positively and provided a cheerful blurb. Or somebody helped find an agent or editor.

I have been lucky enough to have experience those things. I still try to help others.

My advice: Find the time, put in the work and get the manuscript done. Then find the people who will lend you a hand.

Ed Lin, a native New Yorker of Taiwanese and Chinese descent, is the first author to win three Asian American Literary Awards and is an all-around standup kinda guy. His books include Waylaid and This Is a Bust, both published by Kaya Press in 2002 and 2007, respectively. Snakes Can't Run and One Red Bastard, which both continue the story of Robert Chow set in This Is a Bust, were published by Minotaur Books. His latest book, Ghost Month, a Taipei-based mystery, was published by Soho Crime in July 2014. Lin lives in Brooklyn with his wife, actress Cindy Cheung, and son.

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The Role of “Time” in Writing, guest post by Karen Robinson

Time is very important in every activity. Obviously, all our day to day activities are depended on time and therefore, the role of time in our life is so imperative. Keep in mind that if you are engaging in writing, time is an essential factor to write a good paper. Hence, the role of time in writing is huge as well as very important. Time can indeed affect your writing positively and negatively. Time affect yours writing negatively when you devote less time to write your paper. It can affect your writing positively when you give yourself ample time to write your paper. Thus, let’s have a close look at the different roles that times plays in your writing:

Gives Proper Preparation

Writing is a very common thing in academic sphere and in our personal life. In an academic sphere, writing involves dealing with various assignments including essays, thesis, research paper, dissertation, review writing and so on. In our personal life, writing includes writing letter, poems, novels, stories, short stories and so on. One of the most important things that can have an influence in our writing is time. It is the time that decides when to start writing and when to complete writing. Therefore, it can be said that the main role of time in writing is that it gives proper preparation to the writer to write something.

Arrange Writing

Another role of time in writing is arrangement. As far as the writer is concerned, it is very imperative for him to arrange his writing in order to come up with a commanding piece of writing. Lack of arrangement can guide the write to produce a poorly written paper. It is the time that allows the write to make proper arrangement to make a good writing on something. Time allows people to research, find out dependable sources, information and details to write their paper. Your writing will be excellent once you have reliable sources, information and details. As a result, it can be easily said that time arranges writing.

Good Impact

Time gives a good as well as bad impact on our writing. A lot of scholars used to tell that you have to give ample time to write your paper. The main reason is that the more time we give to write a paper, the better you can excel as a writer. When you have less time to write something, you cannot write in your usual flow. When you give you more time to write something, you will have sufficient time to look at the various sides of your arguments and main points. But when you have less time while writing, you will be in a hurry to complete the paper on time. Therefore, you will fail to look at different sides of your arguments in an effective manner.

Deadline

It is the time that gives you a deadline in writing. Time decided from where you can write and whether to complete writing with limited days or hours. Remember that it’s the time that control you when and how much you work. It’s persistently tough to find an adequate amount of time for all the things we would like to do and in some way, it’s extra complicated to find writing time. It will be tough for a lot of people to write in the morning, noon can be tough time for others, and evening or night will be difficult for others. Hence, with no trouble, it can be believed that time puts deadline to writing.

Reminds to Act

The role of time in writing is to remind you to act and to act wisely. When you sit down to write something, you will definitely understand that time is precious and it has to be used up effectively. Time management in writing is very essential and if you are capable of managing time well, you will be successful as a writer. The wisest writer takes advantage of the time fruitfully and in particular by planning how to make his writing successful. Loss of time will guide you to mourn because it will never come back for you. The basic nature of time in writing is to remind you to use the time effectively and engage in writing without wasting time.

Author-bio:

My name is Karen Robinson and I'm centered on composing articles, proficient paper composing and different sorts of works. Writing is my calling as well as my most fascinating field from where I pick up information consistently. My involvements with different custom essay writing service have permitted me to focus on both scholarly and non-scholastic papers.

As Virginia Woolf advocated, I have a room of my own. The thing is, she didn’t explain how to make yourself go to that room and write.

I’m not talking writer’s block here. A Photographic Death is my thirteenth published book, and I’ve written enough newspaper and magazine stories to paper a bathroom. Until a few years ago, I worked fulltime for the Suffolk County Department of Social Services. With a nine-to-five job and a family needing attention, I shoehorned writing in whenever I could.

“Shoehorning” meant writing in my car during my lunch hour, yellow pad on the steering wheel, and checking page proofs while I waited for the high school team to arrive at the game. When I was getting my MFA, I was at the computer for two hours before my day of work began.

When I left my social work job, I didn’t retire. I expanded my avocation of selling used and rare books over the Internet. Tracking down desirable books kept my sense of adventure (and income stream) alive and helped to develop the background for the mysteries featuring bookseller Delhi Laine. Instead of sitting in the driver’s seat in the parking lot at lunchtime, I was working in my car in the early morning hours while waiting for a sale to begin.

So over the years I’ve discovered the best venues for the different aspects of writing.

For Story Planning and General Philosophizing:

Anything in motion. For me, it’s the train to Manhattan or the ferry to Connecticut. I have a tiny Moleskine notebook with a textured blue cover that stays unnoticed in my purse until I am headed somewhere. The entries start, “On the train again” and size up my feelings about my current project, longterm book planning, strategies for publicity and so on. There is something about moving, feeling as if I am going somewhere, that frees up feelings and ideas.

For Working Out Story Points:

This means taking a walk. When my husband Tom and I go around the neighborhood, we notice seasonal changes and often talk. But other times I’ll be thinking about my story and revelations will come. Suddenly I’ll realize, “But Delhi would never . . .“ or “Maybe the reporter in Stratford-Upon-Avon finds out . . “ The plot twists are sometimes logical, often startling. Things occur to me that never would at home.

For Book Revision:

Starbucks. Or any other place that has ambient noise and activity that has nothing to do with me. There’s always someplace, no matter where you are. I’ve even found a table in McDonalds and pulled out my laptop or manuscript pages. Once in a while I’ll go to the library, but it can be a little too quiet in the “Study Room.” A place where there is a sense of life being lived makes it easiest to focus on making editorial changes.

For Writing a First Draft:

Anywhere you’re in the habit of working. If you’re sitting at your desk and feel blocked, go back to your favorite spot to read, send emails on your laptop and so on. For me it’s one corner of the living room couch. It’s where I’m sitting right now. But I know this has to change. Just as soon as I can I’m going to get up and head for that room of my own.

JUDI CULBERTSON draws on her experience as a used-and-rare book dealer, social worker, and world traveler to create her bibliophile mysteries. She has co-authored five illustrated guides with her husband, Tom Randall, of such cities as Paris, London, and New York. She is also the author of the acclaimed nonfiction titles SCALING DOWN and THE CLUTTER CURE. She lives in Port Jefferson, New York, with her family.

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I am a professional writer, but not a full time one. Most of my time is taken up by my more-than-full-time day job as a psychiatrist, so my writing has to fit in around my other commitments.

This is the case for a lot of writers, particularly those just starting out. It may be many years before your writing can support you and your family financially and, even then, there's a large cohort of authors who maintain a regular day job to pay the bills.

A lot of my friends ask me how I possibly have time to write, where I fit it all in. I'm going to share with you my tips for maintaining a creative writing life around day job, family and social commitments.

Maximise your available time

Writers often feel they need a concentrated block of time to write. They want to dedicate entire evenings and weekends to their work, finding The Zone and staying in it as long as possible. However, research into concentration and efficiency has consistently found that human beings cannot sustain attention for hours at a time.

I am a big fan of the Pomodoro Technique (http://pomodorotechnique.com). The idea is simple: 25 minutes work, 5 minutes break, lather, rinse, repeat. Suddenly, that odd hour between the school run and teatime becomes two Pomodoros

Identify your "dead time"

There are parts of any day that are necessary chores, but these can be transformed into productive writing time.

The biggest time-sink is commuting. If you take the train/subway, consider swapping your novel for a notebook or using a writing app on your smartphone or tablet. Last year, I had a twenty minute train commute - that was forty minutes per day, which added up to over three hours of writing time every week!

If you drive, you can use that time to listen to audiobooks - reading is a vital component of writing - or plan your next scene or chapter. A large part of writing is thinking about writing; use your time grocery shopping or your lunch hour to flesh out your concepts and characters in your head.

Use your day job for inspiration

There's a job-hunting buzzphrase that's equally applicable to writing: transferable skills. How can your day job improve your writing? What talents and techniques can you use for both?

Many jobs have one essential writing benefit - meeting people. From your teaching colleagues to shoppers at the checkout, you encounter a variety of people per day who can serve as templates for personalities, mannerisms and naturalistic dialogue.

The old writing maxim "write what you know" also applies here. While you may not want to set your drama in an office, the experience of being holed up with the same people day-in, day-out may serve you well in writing your scenes in a post-apocalyptic nuclear bunker.

Anyone can find time to write - whether it's ten minutes per day or forty hours per week, you can find space in your life for writing. Good luck maximising your free hours, transforming your dead time, and getting inspired by the daily grind!

Rosie Claverton grew up in Devon, daughter to a Sri Lankan father and a Norfolk mother, surrounded by folk mythology and surly sheep. She moved to Cardiff to study Medicine and adopted Wales as her home. Her short film "Dragon Chasers" aired on BBC Wales in Autumn 2012. Her debut novel Binary Witness is due for publication by Carina Press in 2014. Currently exiled to London, she lives with her journalist husband and their pet hedgehog.

Links

Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/binarywitness

Series website: http://amylanemysteries.com

Blog: http://rosieclaverton.com

Twitter: @rosieclaverton

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As a working attorney with two kids and two published novels, the most frequent question I get asked is, “where do you find the time to write books?” My stock answer is that I don’t play golf, which frees up a lot of time. The real answer, though, is that I find time wherever I can, and it’s usually difficult. Over the years, I’ve learned a few things about time management for the moonlighting author, which I’m happy to share with you today.

Always be prepared to write. I prefer writing on my laptop, but I don’t always have it with me. Even when I do, it’s not always convenient to open it up, power it on, and start tapping away on my next chapter. So whenever I think I might have a few quiet minutes to concentrate on writing (for instance at the beach, on an airplane, or sitting at a bar on a business trip), I put a few sheets of folded paper in my pocket along with a pen. That way, when inspiration hits, I can jot down my thoughts wherever I happen to be. I fold each paper in eighths and treat each section like a “page” (I write very small). It’s amazing how much you can fit on a few sheets of paper using this technique. I number each sheet sequentially and keep them until I find a chance to transcribe them into my manuscript. Whatever method you use (ipad, pen-and-paper, tape recorder, etc.), the key is always be prepared to write.

Write first, edit later. This does not come naturally to me, but I’ve learned to force myself to write quickly without thinking too much about grammar, punctuation, syntax, and the absolute best choice of words for each sentence. All of that can be taken care of later during the multiple rounds of editing that will follow. The first task, at least for me, is to get words on the page that will provide the bones of a great story. The polishing comes later.

Never delete anything. During the course of writing a novel, you will inevitably write much more than what actually makes it into the finished product. On many occasions, I have removed entire chapters—even groups of chapters—from my manuscript, either during original drafting or during the editing process. But I never truly delete these blocks of prose. Instead, I save them in a “reserve” file for later use, because you never know when that great description of an alleyway fight in Chinatown or Istanbul at dawn will come in handy.

Just do it. I’ve found that writing is a lot like running. At first, you may not feel like doing it. But if you force yourself to start, either out of habit or because you have a deadline looming, you can usually find a groove and accomplish your goal for the day. For me, the first few sentences each day are often awkward (and destined for the “reserve” file), but the words eventually begin flowing, and before I know it I’ve put paragraphs, pages, and entire chapters behind me. The key is, “just do it.”

Don’t forget to think. Although the physical act of writing is obviously important, don’t overlook the value of just thinking about your plot. This can be done anywhere and at any time—in the shower, during your commute to work, on the treadmill, or just lying in bed. Turn off the TV and the radio, and simply walk through the plot in your mind from start to finish. Put yourself in the shoes of one of your characters and imagine what they are experiencing and thinking during each particular scene. I have found this helps create intimacy with my characters and also helps me solve plot problems, such as “how is this character going to get out of this situation alive?”
I hope this helps. Good luck, and happy writing!

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James Barney is the critically acclaimed author of THE GENESIS KEY (a Thriller Award nominee) and THE JOSHUA STONE. A Booklist starred review says: “Imagine a mix of Michael Crichton, Dan Brown, and Dean Koontz, with a sprinkle of Brad Thor—and maybe a touch of Stephen King’s 11/22/63. The Joshua Stone is completely original and totally terrific. Readers will quickly be looking for Barney’s previous novel, The Genesis Key (2011), and will likely become a fan of his writing for life.”

The more you write the better you get at writing. In recent discussions with Writers and Authors community members it became instantly clear that the thing most writers desire is more time to write. Finding a way to constantly increase your word count is one of the biggest problems a lot of writers face. Is it really just a case of needing more hours in the day though? If you had 8 hours of quality writing time a day would you really write that much more than if you only had 4?

image via PublicDomainpictures.net

Distractions are every where. You've probably all experienced how 5 minutes on Facebook can quickly turn into several hours. Then there's all the offline distractions; phone calls, TV programmes, books to read... cleaning behind your washing machine. Yep any excuse is a good one.

As a full time mum I rarely have long periods of time to dedicate to my writing. Planning writing time isn't really an option as I never know for sure when one of my little ones will wake up from his nap or teething will spring up again resulting in sleepless nights and a clingy baby. I have to grab time when I can.

That said I find that I'm actually far more productive when I have 5 minutes for a writing sprint than when I get a longer time frame. Longer periods usually end up being filled with procrastination of some sort. I therefore know that I personally work better under a certain amount of pressure.

I'm also my own worst critic and struggle to keep my inner editor at bay. Don't get me wrong, editing is good. Editing is essential. When writing however is not the time for editing. Writer and Editor are very separate roles and should be kept as such.

I'm sure many of you will be able to identify with my own experience, even if only in part. So how can we write more?

Find the time. If you only have 5 minutes use it well. It's not a question of how many minutes or hours but instead how you use them.
Write first, Edit later. Lock your inner editor away until your piece is finished.
Keep research separate. Just like with editing, research needs to be done at a different time. Don't interrupt your writing flow by looking things up on Google or Wikipedia.
Be consistent. The more you write, the better you'll get... and faster too. Practice, practice, practice.

Most of all don't be afraid of writing rubbish. That's what editing is for. Nobody writes a perfect first draft. Now stop standing in your own way and go write something.

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