Time…there’s never enough of it.
There’s never enough time during the day. We have jobs, obligations, responsibilities. We have to get up, get ready, get to the job. We have to eat, sleep, social activities. We have families, kids, people who depend on us.
Weekends are tied up with chores, other obligations (taking the kids their soccer games, shopping, helping someone move), and time for ourselves (if we can fit it in).
Time passes quickly.
So when do we find time to write, to create, to be artists? That’s the tough part. Finding time. For me, I get up at five o’clock every morning. I get about thirty minutes of writing time. On weekends, I stay up late and still get up at five, which gives me another eight hours – give or take – between Friday and Sunday.
But it’s not enough.
If you’re anything like me, you have more than one project going at any given time. Me? At the moment I’m working on two short story drafts, the second draft of a novel, editing a short story collection I plan to self-publish, and a collection of flash fiction and photography. This doesn’t take into account the books I’m reading, my podcast (writing a script and recording an episode every week), and finally, working a full-time job.
Whew…
I’m not trying to brag or seek sympathy. I’m just acknowledging that not everyone has the opportunity to spend all their time being creative. We squeeze it in when we can, as often as we can, and hope for the best. We don’t have the luxury of spending hours thinking over some trivial plot point or narrative decision. It’s like trench warfare – we’re fighting to get our stories written, to draft and rewrite, despite the odds stacked against us. I envy the writers who have the time, the space, to write and edit without having to look at the clock.
In the end, despite the time limitations, I still do it. I still squeeze in the time to do the things I love. I need to write, so I find the time. I make the time. It ain’t always easy, but I do the best I can. Do I wish I had more time? Hell yes! But since I don’t I try and make the best of the time I do have.
Depending on who you are, writing can be a job, or a hobby, or something you simply DO. I’m one of the latter types. I have to write. It in my DNA, an automated response, a reflex action. It’s who I am.
No, there’s never enough time, but that’s okay. I’ll make do. I hope you will, as well.
RB