One Writer's Life

Keeping Up

Writing requires a commitment for time to write and a passion to keep going when the going gets tough. Time seems to be the biggest problem for me. I sit down at my computer and read my e-mails, check out MySpace site and Facebook. Soon, hours have passed and no writing or editing has been done.
Today, I realized how wasteful I have been with time. I'm using blog readings and emails as an excuse to avoid getting down to work. This pattern must be broken.
I started my day a bit differently by doing the watering outside first while I thought about my work in-progress. Back inside as soon as the computer came on, I broke my resolution to change my ways!
Blogging and emails came first! This felt like the New Year's Eve promises I make and never seem able to keep, but lucky for me, my wireless keyboard went dead. That meant i had to wait for the batteries to recharge before continuing my poor time management.
I made some notes for my work-in-progress, took a shower, washed my hair so I'd be ready for tonight's romance writer's meeting, put the now charged batteries in place and came back on the Internet.
I know to change my ways totally, I must take small steps. I allowed myself fifteen minutes on the Internet for this session before I sign off and go to work for real. Tomorrow, I will have to earn my Internet minutes by writing first. I'm not sure what time or word count I'll use, but the writing now must come first.
How do you resolve your time commitments for your family, your writing, your day job if you have one, and playing on the Internet?

One Writer's Life

Time Management

I looked at the date of the last blog posting and was aghast at how time slipped away from me. I regularly post on myspace at www.myspace.com/cherannlee, but have neglected this one much to my sorrow.

To try and improve my daily goals I have started making daily lists like this one:
water flowers
skim pool
give treats to cats
let dog outside
take out trash and recycle stuff
call friend and make a luncheon date (friend just lost her father in death)
hem a graduation gown for a young friend who graduates today
mail a birthday card to Texas
check emails, all 80 of them
update blogs
edit chapters 4 & 5
write chapter 6 again
remember to eat before a headache occurs
e-mail pics to granddaughter
eat before a headache begins

Now the list was done and some of the items were actually finished in the order of need: the watering, the treats, the dog let out, the e-mails, the blogging, the hemming of gown and next to come my writing.

If anyone knows a tip or two for better time management, I'd love to hear. My problem I know stems from saying yes to many things, so now it's a scramble to get even the basic daily living thing done. Maybe in the future I will remember there is one rarely used word in my vocabulary--NO. I plan to take it out, dust it off and even try to use it, too.