On Thursday I’ll be presenting Strategies for Developing a Successful Writing Career While Working Full Time. Yeah, me. It makes my partner laugh every time I bring it up. Usually the people who present these talks are the ones who are neatly categorizing every moment of their lives to the point where they look like the cover models for Organization & Happiness Weekly. I’m the guy struggling to put it all together while living in two homes and juggling a crap ton of kids and responsibilities all while striving to make a lot more money than seems possible.
In other words, I’m perfect for the job.
See, the people who have it all figured out are the ones who think it is easy. It is not easy. It is, well, inevitable, if you allow yourself to follow a few basic rules. Those rules are as follows:
- Be loyal to the words. That is the most important rule. I know it is hard –very hard- to stay consistent as a writer. I am struggling with the 1500k a day. It is extremely hard to reach the plateau and I have failed for the last 4 days. Still, I don’t quit and I don’t try to put in make up words to ensure I maintain the number. I tried that and it felt like I was always playing catch up and then the experience became more stress than was manageable for me to still maintain any real creativity.
- Let yourself write when the time comes. Also, figure out a time to write. Seriously. It might not be the same time every day, but you should be looking ahead at your schedule and scooping out an amount of time every day that works within that daily schedule. This part matters. Sticking to one specific time a day can also be stressful, and as I argued above, stress means you aren’t being creative.
- Find a place to let the words loose. I live in two homes and both come with responsibilities and people who want my time and attention (discussed further below). If I’m in a space with them and they are having fun and galavanting and making noise then I cannot focus on what I need to do.
- Decide how much the words matter. Or in short, prioritize. The words might not be the most important thing. Handle that thing first and then trickle down to the words.
- Remember to have fun. That is a key one. Once you stop enjoying writing it become onerous. That is a death knell to creativity.