Things that distract you from or while writing

[Mel]

I've desperately been trying to find some time to write. I thought I would get a bit done tonight with just one kid home. Instead of 3 and the man.

I have found that writing while making macaroni-and-cheese, doing long division, reading vocab and spelling words, braiding hair and discussing why boys are gross and stupid does not make for GOOD writing.

I called one of the guys "rooster" then "January". I put in 48 divided by 4 and 16 divide by 2 then I put in a line about picking noses and stealing pencils. I also put the milk in the mac-and-cheese twice so it was a little sloopy.

Then in a parenting of the year award moment I was asked, "what does duke mean?" only she pronounced it dock, and I answered with the word I was currently typing. I'm hoping she never repeats what I said.

She is now in bed and I am alone, I'm gonna go fix/erase what I wrote and start over.

[H.R.]

Oh lord this sounds like my writing time haha. I have found that the only time I can really write is at night, once the kids are in bed and I'm drinking a nice glass of wine. Even during the afternoon when my daughter is napping I feel like everything distracts me. The cat climbs up onto the keyboard. My dog is begging for the frisbee. My stomach growls for lunch. Those floors really need to be mopped. And then uh oh it's 3:00 and I have to go get my son. How much did I write? Probably a sentence lol. And then I have them both home. Veggietales on Tv. Mommy I need a snack. Mommy, Kaelyn is holding that cat by it's neck...it goes on lol

[Mel]

Yup, Just the one kid again and she was self entertaining but laundry and dishes then dinner and bedtime and avoiding bedtime and a shower and now it's 10 pm. Now I want to go to bed.

Kaelyn and Victora have much in common. I routinely had to extract Morris our 18 pound orange tiger from Build-A-Bear clothing and strollers. That cat never once bit or scratched her. Unreal

[Emily]

Sounds like everyday for me. I homeschool while writing and I usually have a fifteen year old growling at his algebra while I'm trying to write and my ten year old trying to get out of doing her school work and it feels like everytime I finally open up word to write she's suddenly hungry even if I ask her before I sit down. LOL

[[deleted user]]

This sounds trite but count the blessings. Because I have no children at home, the grandkids are 'past' granddad and my wife passed 15 years since, I can write. (Not a plea for sympathy, it's life) So I write whenever I sit down, which I do a lot because the legs have gone as well (Not literally but they don't work so well).
Dog and cat rotate onto my knee, but the keyboard is conveniently placed for that. Millions of words pour onto the page, but they still don't make sense. Every attempt to edit gives me more storyline (and oh boy, does it all need editing!).
Time to write will come, perhaps too much of it. In the meanwhile your life will make that eventual writing richer, and this chaos will be a warm, happy memory.
You may even work that ginger moggie into a story - I did with mine. (Though not the unrepeatable mistake to my daughter)

[H.R.]

@John Thank you for the wisdom. Although I complain,quite often in fact, I do enjoy my children. They grow too fast. I found some videos of when my daughter was a newborn and my son was 3 and I almost cried. I don't know where it's going! So when people ask me 'Why haven't you finished your book yet?' I say 'because first I'm a mom, then I'm a writer."

[[deleted user]]

I can tell you enjoy them, it shines through. Raising a book to adulthood isn't as much fun or as satisfying, though it's a substitute of sorts.

[Relina]

Even though I'm old enough to have start a family, I'm not lucky enough to be given that chance. My work situation has been pretty bleak for the last few years so I have to live at home with my parents. Every time I think I'm going to have time to write my mother tells me that I have to either do the laundry, clean the house, go food shopping, etc. Then there is aunty duties, T-Ball games and helping my sister out by helping with her kids, laundry, house cleaning, etc. I've found the only time I can get down anything is when I'm at work subbing for high school students. Luckily, I tend to get a prep period and a lunch where I can hide in the media center typing on my tablet. It's taking me longer to write my books, but it is better than nothing.

[H.R.]

Improvisation at it's finest ;-) Good job Relina. Finding the time can be awful but so rewarding in the end

[Mel]

I may bitch and moan, whine and complain but I wouldn't trade it for anything. Life indeed has been a roller coaster ride. And without the downs you don't truly appreciate the ups as I have come to realize in the last few years. And it's strange and funny in a way how life seems so much better after hitting rock bottom four years ago.

I used to read the kind of books where the woman was always getting into trouble and having to be rescued.

Now I read the ones where the woman is a kick-ass-honey and can do her own rescuing.

And if I had to give up what I have now to have plenty of free time to write I wouldn't take that option. As a matter of fact. there is quite a lot I would give up to have back in my life the people I didn't fully appreciate while they were here.

John, It sounds like you had and have a full life with your family, both two and four legged. If you want a collaborator or someone to bounce ideas off of just let me know. Somehow I manage to make time for friends even when time is short.

And I will never again attempt to write while doing homework. I wasn't giving writing my best and I also wasn't giving my daughter what she deserved. Her mothers full attention.