Is It Possible To Be An Author And Have A Social Life?
As I draft my second novel and begin making my ideas a black and white entity on the blank computer screen before me; I am beginning to contemplate one question; is it possible to be an author and have any semblance of a social life?
I know that once I begin to write, I will become so deeply submerged in the fantasy world in my head that the outer world will slowly cease to exist. The characters that I am creating will have more prevalence to me than the real people in my life and I will be shut off for many many months, lost in the intermingling battalion of words, flying around ceaselessly until it becomes impossible to remember that it’s Sally’s birthday Friday night, or Jane just broke up with her boyfriend and could use a girl’s night in or the such like.
The truth is that after three years of leading a hermit-like existence, the thought of becoming so wrapped up in my next book worries me slightly. I am eagerly anticipating the time-stopping, finger tapping rush of exhilaration I feel when allowing my words to flood out of me for hours at a time, but I am also anxious of the exhaustion I know I will have to deal with on a daily basis when I have been writing until three in the morning and my son wakes me up at seven.
This year has been amazing for me so far; I had my first novel published, have been successful in placing it into many stores, getting publicity, book signings, and as a result of my success I seem to be attracting people too. Am I ready to go back to the lonely nights where the only thing I have to keep me company is a coffee and my thoughts?
How do professional writers manage to balance their writing with their families and friends? Is it possible or are a writer’s only real friends the characters that they have imagined and fantasize about every night and day?
If anyone has any tips then I would appreciate it; in the meantime I will be limbering up and getting ready to dive head first into my next book, whatever the consequences will be on my social life. Happy writing everyone!
