I wish you time to write! This is always my Christmas wish for you, dear writer friends. Personally, I think there is no better time to write than over the holiday period. Somehow, even with the kids at home, there was always a moment to slip away. You may not believe that or feel that. Especially if all the shopping, cooking, present choosing and wrapping falls to you. Take the time. You have a right to write. Demand the time. Devise and design the time. Be that person who says, ‘yeah, no, I’d love to, but I have something to finish on the computer today.’
- You don’t have to accept every invitation. Prioritize your writing by politely declining stuff that doesn’t spark joy or move you towards your goals.
- Explain your writing goals to family and friends. Get their support to respect your writing time or even help you carve it out.
- Slip away to a quiet café, library corner, or even a parked car. Where you write is not important, just do it.
- Set a timer for 15–20 minutes and focus purely on writing. The Art of Writing mantra for years has been I’ll just write for 30 minutes. Before you know it, you cannot stop.
- Use long drives, flights, or train rides to jot down ideas, brainstorm, or even draft chapters. Or make sure you listen to writing podcasts to inspire you.
- Above all, swap an episode of your favourite TV series or 20 minutes of scrolling for writing time!
Dear, dear writer friends, fiercely protect your writing time.
Any of these strategies resonate with you?
In other news, check out our writer interview guests for early 2025!
Hope to see you every second Tuesday night at 7 pm Sydney, 9 am Italy and 8 am UK for our TIME TO WRITE chats. But remember, ultimately the correct time for your location is up to you. At the moment (until I return to Italy for the European summer) it’s always 7 pm Sydney time!
Following the Christmas break, our Time to Write schedule is as below. This Zoom invitation is recurring so will not change. Save it! 😊 Then we write together for one hour in silence.
January 21st Shelley Dark: The journey towards the Indie publishing decision.
February 4th Ashley Kalagian-Blunt: Those plot beat decisions!
February 18th: Morag Pringle: Revise, review and re-draft or die.
Break for March 6-9 for the Art of Writing in Brisbane.
Resume April 8th: Paul Daley: Don’t know topic yet. Just had to get him!
April 22nd: To be decided.
Who have we interviewed? Vanessa McCausland was just divine! So giving and honest about her writing skills and experience. You can buy her latest HarperCollins book THE LAST ILLUSION OF PAIGE WHITE here. Available in the US and Australia.
Pull out your diary and join The Art of Writing in Brisbane from March 6-9 for The Art of Plot and Theme in 2025. And don’t forget:
Florence: The Art of Plot and Theme, June 1-5, 2025.
Florence: The Art of Telling Your Story, July 6-10, 2025.
Lisa is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
THIS INVITATION IS THE SAME ZOOM LINK FOR RECURRING SESSIONS
Lisa is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: TIME TO WRITE:
Time: Dec 31, 2024 07:00 PM Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney
Every 2 weeks on Tue, until Apr 22, 2025, 9 occurrence(s)
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Lisa
