My friend and mentor, James Scott Bell, made a tough decision some time back. Jim describes himself as a "recovering attorney," but now he earns his living by writing. That means that he sets a schedule, makes sure he produces a weekly word count, and sticks with it. I applaud Jim and all the others who've chosen this route, but for most of us, the advice is still "Don't quit your day job."
In my case, I'm a retired physician, so my day job is helping around the house, doing a lot of grandfatherly stuff, and occasionally playing golf. In the case of other writers, the day job involves different things, but all of them are the same in one respect--they require time and commitment. And that means that, if we're to write, we have to carve out a time to do so. Thus, the hard part of being a part-time writer. Achieving balance.
I've gone through a tough loss in my life. My first wife passed away after forty years of marriage. I, above all people, know that we're not guaranteed another day. So I keep in mind that, although my writing is important, my family are even more so. That's why I make sure that Sundays are devoted to worship and family, not to writing. That's why, when we're asked to keep one or more of the grandkids, the answer is always, "Sure"--even if I should be revising a manuscript. It's all about balance.
What do you have to balance in your own life? I hope you'll share with us.
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4 comments:
I'm happy to read this, Richard. I've had a tough time with balance. I'm all over the place ... obsessively writing for two to three weeks, then not writing for a week or two because I'm trying to catch up with all I let go. I'm trying now to find a routine that works for me, and that means keeping priorities like family, friends and our new puppy at the forefront. Thanks for a great post.
Thanks, Kim. If we read the tweets and Facebook posts of our fellow authors, we might get the impression that they're all doing so much better than we are. Actually, I suspect that most of us are like ducks--swimming placidly on the surface, while beneath we're churning like crazy to keep moving.
I appreciate your comment.
Love that swimming duck analogy! :)
When I'm juggling too many projects I feel so harried I seldom make progress on any of them until a deadline for something comes up. Then I focus on that one thing and get it done. I can always find time for my writing because it's what I most want to do. I dedicate time every morning and evening to it, but I need to find a better balance in my approach to everything else!
Carol, thanks for chiming in. I'm told that--like most men--I'm a linear thinker. You know, one thing at a time. When I'm called upon to juggle several things, all of them suffer. I wish I had an answer.
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