5 Tips for Busy Mommy-Writers

As a wife and stay-at-home mom to three boys, my days are full and busy. Between grocery shopping and preparing meals; cleaning and laundry; potty training and feedings; homework and projects, it can be a challenge to find adequate time for writing. I am extremely passionate about my family; by the same token, I am also passionate about my craft. Therefore, it is important to me that I am able to devote time and attention to nurturing and developing my skills. 

In a perfect world, my daily schedule would always run smoothly, and I’d have no problem making time for writing. My younger two sons would take synchronized naps every day. Laundry would never pile up. My oldest son would remind me of school project deadlines weeks in advance. The children would never get sick. My husband would always arrive home on time for dinner. But in my not-so-perfect world, that’s all wishful thinking. Most days my schedule gets thrown out of the window; the children play straight through naptime; laundry becomes demanding; my oldest son doesn’t remember his project is due until the night before; and I’m sure to get the honey-I’m-going-to-be-late call from my husband. The time to sit down and write becomes slim to none.

 So what’s a mommy-writer to do? How does she find the time to write without feeling rushed and frazzled? Well, here are a few tips that work well for me:

 1. Set weekly writing goals. Setting goals gives you something to work towards and makes you accountable. If you’re writing a book, you should set a weekly word count. If you are a blogger, consider how many blogs you’ll post within a week. If you write articles, decide how many submissions you’ll make. When you set your goals, stick to them. Just as you may do with your children, give yourself a reward for accomplishing your goals, or take something away if you don’t. Be accountable to yourself.

 2. Use children’s naptime as writing time. This can often be quite challenging. After you set your goals, the next thing you need to do is find time to work towards them. What better time than your children’s naptime! It’s quiet, and you can focus your mind solely on the task at hand. Sure enough, there will be times when you’d much rather join your sleeping angels for some beauty rest – and there are definitely times when that is necessary – but if you can help it, use that hour or so specifically for writing. You’ll be amazed at how much writing you can get done during that time.

 3. Stay up past bedtime. Proper rest is most important, and writing while sleepy is never a good idea. However, on those days when you’re able to get in a power nap with your children, consider staying awake an hour or two after your family has settled for the night to work towards your writing goals. You will often find that this can sometimes serve a dual purpose – it helps you relax and unwind from a busy day, and allows you uninterrupted time to devote towards nurturing your craft.

 4. Jot down your thoughts. As a mom, there’s so much that runs through your mind during the course of the day. If you’re anything like me, the inspiration to write hits at the most inopportune times and you’re unable to devote the time to getting it all out. This is where modern technology becomes your best friend. Between smartphone and ipad apps, it’s easy to voice record your thoughts and come back to them at a later time. That way, you won’t lose all of the great ideas that came to your mind while in the middle of feeding your little one, or cleaning the mess your independent toddler made. If you’re not too tech savvy, there’s always the old faithful pen and paper. When it comes to your mind, jot it down.

5. Make it a game. During your children’s playtime, make writing a game. You can give your children their own paper and crayons while you grab your laptop (Or whatever you use to write.), set the timer for 15 minutes and have mommy and kids writing time. The children will enjoy scribbling all over their paper, and you’ll actually be able to get some work done, all while spending time with your children.

The life of a mom is a busy one, and that of a mommy-writer can sometimes be challenging. If you keep first things first, prioritize, and make the best of the time you have, you can be successful at building your writing career. Don’t fall to pieces if a day or two passes and you weren’t able to get much, or any, writing done. That’s okay, because at the end of the day family comes first.

Happy Writing!

3 Mental Hurdles for New Writers and How to Overcome Them

I was so excited.  I’d finally found my niche – writing – and I was ready to jump into the deep and make it a real profession.  In my excitement, I made a plan to write every single day.  I thought, I’ll start a blog…write for magazines…pen books, and in my mind, I thought it would all be effortless.  I presumed that words would flow from my fingertips as easily as water flows from a faucet.  Boy was I wrong!

As a new writer, I found it hard to find inspiration.  But more than that, my excitement about being a writer quickly turned into apprehension when I began to size myself up against all of the other great writers out there.  I felt like an ant in a room full of grasshoppers.  Scary!  Before I knew it, I was second-guessing myself and feeling like no one would want to read anything I had to say.

Here are a few crippling thoughts that ran through my mind, and tips on how I worked through them:

1.      Will people like my work?  This was one of my biggest concerns.  With so many writers out there producing great work, I wondered if I had the ability to do the same, and if others would like it.  As in any facet of life, you simply will not appeal to everyone.  No matter how great your work may be, there will be some that will not be pleased.  But that’s okay.  The people that are supposed to will gravitate towards your work, and they will love it.  So yes, people will like your work as long as you give it your best.

2.      What makes me different from any other writer?  Everyone has their own uniqueness; that includes you.  Although you may target the same genre of writing as other writers, your unique style of writing is what sets you apart.  The main thing here is not to focus so much on being different, but rather on just being yourself.  Readers aren’t necessarily looking for writers who stand out, but more so for those whose authentic personality shines through their written work.  You’re already different from other writers because your talent is unique to who you are and the people you’re supposed to reach.

3.      What qualifies me to be a writer?  This one can be kind of tricky.  Some will argue that education, experience, and expertise spell qualification.  If you have that, that’s great.  However, there are many accomplished writers who have none of that.  Your gift, talent, and passion for what you do are what qualify you.  That’s something that comes from within, and cannot be taught, coerced, or fabricated.  When you’ve got it, you’ve got it.  You just have to be confident in what’s within, whether you’ve been professionally trained or not.

The wonderful thing about being a writer is that the more you do it, the better you become.  The problem most new writers have is actually getting started…that was definitely the case for me a few years ago.  So how do you start?  You start one sentence at a time, and you build from there.  The world of writing can sometimes be very intimidating, but you can get over that hurdle by focusing on your strengths and working to improve your weaknesses.

Happy writing!

-LaKeisha Rainey-Collins