.jpg)
I’ve always been a night owl. As a child, I snuggled down under the covers with a flashlight, reading long after my
parents thought I was asleep. As a teenager, I switched off my light when I
heard them coming up to bed, and switched it on again once they closed their
bedroom door, and then continued to write my latest cheesy romance story for my
friends to read on the school bus the next day.
My inner clock had to adjust once I had my babies. Bed after
the 10 o’clock feed, in the hope of 4 hours sleep before the next feed. Waking
groggily at 6 am when toddlers were awake and rarin’ to start their day.
The evening became my friend. The time when the children
were in bed, and I finally had some ‘me’ time. That was when I wrote my early
novels.
Then, when the children were older, I was working again. Up
early (groggily again!) to get them ready for nursery or school, and then on to
my full-time teaching job. Some people envy teachers’ hours of work, without
thinking of the hours they have to spend in their supposedly free time in the
evenings and holidays. They seem to forget that lessons have to be prepared,
worksheets designed, work marked, exams set and then graded (etc etc etc) in
the evenings.
Even so, there were times when I stayed up late, again for
‘me’ time after the children were in bed, and the school work done, and wrote
stories or articles.
I often regretted it the next morning, when I had to get up
early! Morning was (is!) not my best time. A colleague once said, “Don’t ask
Paula anything before 10.30 if you want a sensible answer.”
With retirement came freedom! But old habits die hard. I
have discovered my ‘muse' tends to kick me about 9pm. I can write
emails and letters during the daytime. I can compose blogs, and critique my CPs
work. But my mind won’t cope with my own story writing until the evening, even when I'm actually looking forward to continuing the story from where I finished the previous evening.
If I could discipline myself to get into creative mode
earlier in the day, I’d probably finish my stories much sooner. But my whole
life seems to have been geared up to ‘me’ time in the evenings – which is why I
often stay up late. No way could I get up early to write, or allocate mornings
or afternoons, or ‘office hours’, as I know some people do. Maybe the only plus
side of this is that I do write something every day. Sometimes 100 words,
sometimes 2 or 3 thousand.
Do you have a favourite time to write? And if you do, what
happens if you try to make yourself write at other times?
I've found that I often have to push myself to write at a convenient time, rather than at the time I'd like to write, but it's been a useful skill to have. I use the same "push" when I'm uninspired, but still want to/need to write.
ReplyDeleteJen, I think it's different when you have a lot of family and other commitments, but now, with my family (and even my grandsons) grown up and living their own lives, I have plenty of days to myself - but still can't settle to writing in the evening. I really should discipline myself better!
DeleteThat should read 'until the evening' !
DeleteI, too, am a night owl, and have been since birth (ask my mother). I can write in the afternoon and late morning, too, but early morning? Forget it. Unless I've been up all night and am just keeping on.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely not early morning for me either, Renee - unless you count after midnight, and sometimes until 2am early morning!
DeleteI wish I had a favorite time to write. I sneak in time whenever I have a few moments.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm chuckling about your topic. I feel like I'm neither a morning person or a night owl. I like sleeping in (Which I don't get to do during the school year.) and going to bed early. In the summer I can make it until about 11:00 pm, but on school night it's lights out between 9:30 and 10:00.
I do remember, though, back in the day, staying up into the wee hours to read. Midnight or one was no problem for me. Ah...the good old days... (she sighs)
I rarely went to bed as early as 10pm, even when I was working, Debra, although there were times when I regretted my late nights! These days, I've found about 7 hours sleep is my norm - bed at 1pm, wakeup at 8pm. Retirement is great when you can let your inner body clock settle into its natural rhythm!
DeleteI am trying to discipline myself to get up at 5 am and write. I wake up easily enough, but getting out from under warm covers is sometimes hard. I like the stillness of the house at that early hour. No distractions, no one looking over my shoulder. I still have vestiges of a feeling that I am Not being productive, not earning needed money when I write for myself. I can justify doing for others by critiquing, doing workshop homework. After my first story is published, I expect that old issue will finally fall away. (Boy, this sounds like I need a therapist!)
ReplyDelete5am??? Does that time actually exist?? No way could I write anything at that time!
DeleteOn a serious note, relatively very few writers earn enough to make a living from their writing. Even in the 60s and 70s, when my books were published by Harlequin, the 6 monthly cheques were very welcome (and helped to pay a few bills), but nowhere near enough even to contemplate a full time writing career. For most writers, then and now, writing is not financially 'productive'. I can say that even with 6 novels published, and one of them doing reasonably well on Amazon.
When I first started writing I did it at the office (plenty of spare time fortunately) but when I gave it up to become a full time writer I continued office hours - and do so to this day. (10 til 4 instead of 9 til 5) Except that my brain works more slowly so it takes me longer to write these days.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it shows that old habits die hard, Margaret! And I know what you mean about the brain taking longer these days!
Delete