After a couple of years of me writing fiction from 5.15 - 5.45am, our family schedule changed a bit and I tried writing in the evenings instead.
It didn't work out so
well!
I'm now getting back into the groove of my usual writing slot, and this has made me think about the importance of when we write.
I'll bet that you, like me, have times of day when you're normally feeling focused and energised ... and other times of the day when all you want to do is slump on the sofa.
I'm definitely a morning person. In an ideal world, I'd be up at 6am,
planning my day and getting some quiet writing done. (Alas, in the real world, my 2-year-old and 4-year-old take it in turns to wake up at 5am...)
My husband likes mornings, but not quite such early mornings as me: he needs a bit of time to wake up and get moving.
How about you? Maybe mornings aren't your thing, but you have a lot of energy in the afternoons. Or perhaps, like many writers, you enjoy working late into the night, when the
world is quiet and still and the demands of the day are done with.
This week, have a think about these questions:
- Is your current writing time working for you? (If you aren't writing at all, that means it's definitely not working for you!)
- What options do you have for changing things around or trying out something new?
I know that, like me, you probably have certain constraints on your writing time: children's
schedules, a day job, volunteering commitments, hobbies, TV shows you want to watch live, date night with your loved one, and so on. But within those constraints, you probably have some wiggle room. Pick a time of day that might suit you well ... and experiment with it for at least a couple of weeks.
(If it helps, feel free to reply to this email and let me know what time of day you'll be trying out as your new writing
slot.)
