From the pen of Gail Sattler
December 2013
Writing When You're Too Busy To Write
Christmas is coming! When the word Christmas is mentioned, I'm sure I'm not the only person who starts hearing Christmas carols in their head. But with that, is also the sometimes overwhelming list of what else we all need to do to get ready for Christmas day. Shopping. Decorating. Parties and events. Baking. Wrapping.
Did writing make it to the list? It sure made it to my list, because I have a deadline that can't be put off a month. As well, before the deadline of my current book, my editor will be sending me revisions and proofs on the last book, which is due to be out in the spring of 2014.
That means, regardless of the season of the year, or how busy that season is, we really shouldn't let our writing dwindle to zero. We can't. I'm telling myself that this next month of writing is going to be very exciting for me. My current project is going to be released for Christmas 2014, meaning that for the first time, in all the Christmas books I've done, this is the first time I'm actually going to be writing a Christmas story at Christmas time. Realistically I won't be finished by the end of December, but it's great fodder for the construction.
For most people, the short solution is to nail down a time and/or day that will work, and go to our computers regardless of how tired we tell ourselves that we are. If I've been shopping, after everything important has been hidden, my first inclination is to go put up my sore feet, pour a hot coffee or tea, and relax. Surprise.... if I'm writing, I'm sitting, and I always have a cup of coffee beside me. Unless what's on television is a Christmas special that I really want to watch (Lady Gaga? Really?) then my time is better spent and my brain better engaged in front of my computer with my fingers in high gear.
Or, for baking, I love to do baking exchanges where I spend a few hours making massive quantities of my favorite snack, then spend a few hours at a party with my friends (having more coffee) to exchange baking. That's two items on the list covered - party and baking. Then, being in a happy mood with that done, I can go home to have more coffee, and write.
The bottom line is simply to make the time. Simple, she says? No, not always. But it is doable. No matter how organized we are, we won't get as much writing done in the Christmas season, but with some good planning, we can still do a lot.
Go for it, and Merry Christmas!
Till the new year.
Gail Sattler
www.gailsattler.com
Gail Sattler is a well known author with 30 books published with Barbour, Harlequin, Abingdon Press, and B&H.
See Gail's Past Pens
See her Indie Publishing article from July.
 Buy Scrivener for Mac
|
