Managing is often synonymous with scheduling. My to do list is at the whim fate and the control of others. My idea of "me time" is a quick shower or a few hours of sleep. When I do schedule specific time, the Peter Principle will come into play and a emergency will take precedence.
While my fiction writing time isn't managed as such, I do know how. When I covered events as a correspondent, I'd drive there (it helped keep me calm for all the interviews), then my husband would drive home. I would use the return time to write the articles while the memories-- and shorthand-- were fresh in my mind. Before that, when I worked in New York City in the World Trade Center, the hour-long train ride each way (more in bad weather) was dedicated to writing.Stop by the rest of the posts in the hop to see how the other authors manage their writing time.
~till next time, Helen
to fix the gremlins who put in dots where characters should be.
Valerie Ulmer
You really do have to get the writing in when you can depending on life's demands.
ReplyDeleteI just have to avoid shiny objects.
DeleteI'm such a slow writer, I always wondered how journalists could whip out copy so quickly! Sounds like a good technique, writing in the car while your husband drove.
ReplyDeletewriting a newspaper piece or a magazine feature is different than fiction. Answer the five "w" and you're halfway there. Half the time, the biggest issue is a catch headline.
DeleteI have great admiration for anyone who can work as a journalist. Deadlines that come more often than once every six months??? I don't think I could do that!
ReplyDeleteI never planned on being a correspondent, it just happened. Being a correspondent and feature story writer did mean lots of deadlines. Sometimes ten or fifteen at a time. Event coverage usually had to be filed within 48 hours to meet the monthly publication deadline. But with features sometimes you had a month or two, or occasionally even three months as a deadline.
DeleteIt is a comfort to know I'm not alone in thinking this way. It'll get done when it gets done. Unless there's a deadline, but I already know that! LOL Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI think there are a lot more of us who even though retired or don't have a "day job" still have to work to find balance and writing time. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteIt sounds like you've adapted well and always found a way to make it work. I like your graphics... Especially this one: "Life would just rip it up anyway."
ReplyDeleteI couldn't resist the graphic. :)
DeleteI imagine being a journalist was good training in how to write quickly, just as being a tech writer was good training for me in formatting and producing self-published books.
ReplyDeleteMy formal training as a correspondent came years after I was already a professional. The same thing with my technical writing career. Both were a change from computer code. I definitely agree that having to do it all including formatting and print specs was good training for being an indie publisher.
Delete