.jpg)
I’ve always been a night owl, never a morning person. When I was a child, I used to read under the covers with a flashlight long after my parents thought I must be asleep. Maybe not until midnight but certainly much later than my supposed ‘bed-time’.
As a teenager, I’d turn off my light, wait until my parents went to bed (probably about 10.30 or 11pm) then switch on my light again and either read or continue writing the next chapter of my current story, for my friends to read avidly the next day. Okay, those early romances of mine were very corny but my friends enjoyed them!
For a lot of my adult life, I had to cease burning the midnight oil. Baby era - 10pm feed, get some sleep before she wakes again. 25 year teaching era – gotta get up at 7am, need to get to bed early
Not always, though. Once the first baby started sleeping through the night, I was writing again in the evenings. My first novel was written (and typed out laboriously on an old upright typewriter) when my elder daughter was about one – fortunately the sound of those clattering keys didn’t wake her.
Once both daughters grew into school kids and I returned to teaching, I’d enjoy some ’me’ when they were both in bed, and when I’d marked books or planned next day’s lessons. Maybe not into the early hours, but certainly until late at night.
Eventually came retirement – i.e. taking early retirement in my mid-fifties. Wow, freedom! To do what I want, when I want! And that included staying up as late as I wanted, because I didn’t have to get up at (to me) some silly o’clock time in the morning. I might get up about 8am these days but most of my friends know not to call me until after 10am if they want any coherency from me!
Old habits seem t die hard. I still do my best writing at night. I may have a whole day free (sometimes!) but day-time writing doesn’t work for me. My mind works so much better from about 9pm onwards. My muse is obviously a night-owl too.
I’m full of admiration (and envy) for people who can get up at 6am and start writing. But me? Yes, I’m a midnight writer.
It's funny how we all have different routines. I simply continued to work office hours when I gave up work to become a writer and still do to a certain extent. At least our job means we can have a flexible lifestyle. Any confines we put on it are of our own making.
ReplyDeleteSeems like you're more self-disciplined than I am, Margaret. Maybe if I worked office hours, I could finish my books in half the time!
DeleteMy schedule has changed so often, I'm not sure I dare call it a schedule anymore. I used to write from the time the kids went to bed until I did. But I can't concentrate at night--I'm too tired. So now I basically write while they are in school. Occasionally I'll add some more words while they are home working on homework or while waiting for them at an appointment. During the summer, when they're away and I have at least 12 hours to myself, I write in spurts throughout the day. But at night, all I want to do is read or watch TV.
ReplyDeleteAt one time (since retiring) I used to write in the afternoons, and I can still write blogs etc in the daytime, and also edit. But the first draft is definitely evening work for me!
DeleteI'm neither a morning person or a late night person. I just like my sleep! :)
ReplyDeleteI get up early when I have to for work and such, but I'd much prefer sleeping in. AND going to bed early the night before.
These days my writing time is after dinner to before watching tv with the hubby time.
I used to like me sleep too, but now I can manage quite easily with 7 hours i.e. bed at about 1am and up at 8.
DeleteMy internal clock has been changing. I wake up early, so that's when I try to write. Getting up early means I get sleepy earlier than midnight, so words do not flow coherently in the evening, Course, they don't always flow coherently any other time. Winter weekends are my best hours.
ReplyDeleteIf I wrote anything early in the morning, it would be total gibberish! My brain is definitely not wired for mornings!
DeleteI used to read under the covers too. An only child , books were my friend and somehow reading secretly with a torch under bedcovers was part of the big adventures I had with them. I wrote books and illustrated them and stapled them together as gifts for my parents. Now here am on the computer at midnight, trying to write books and thinking of self publishing. Some things never change, Eh Paula?
ReplyDeleteMy parents weren't interested in my writing at all. As an only child, I wrote for myself - and later, in my teens, for my friends. Yay for 'under the bedcover readers' - and late night writers!
DeleteI don't know how you can write as late as you do. I'm definitely an early morning person. Fortunately we are all different! :)
ReplyDeleteI and my brothers all loved to read, and would bring lots of books home from the library when my Dad drove us over there. We're all still readers, but I'm the only one who has taken it a step further, and also write.
ReplyDelete