THE GLAMOROUS LIFE OF A WRITER (HA!)
I visit with a lot of book clubs and one of the most frequently asked questions they ask is for me to describe a typical day. When I finish laughing hysterically, I try to explain that there’s no such thing in my life as ‘typical.’ I spend about 70 hours a week either writing or doing writing-related activities—blogging, website updates, newsletter, answering fan mail, doing pre-release publicity etc. I’m also the mother of two teenagers who somehow seem to need me more now than they ever have, own a Velcro dog who is very needy (he’s pressed against my side as I type) and a husband who travels 2-3 nights every week for his job. There’s simply no room for ‘typical’!
That’s not to say that I just let things happen willy-nilly—never a good idea when one is trying to complete books with a contractual deadline! I’m incredibly organized (friends and family have referred to me—never within slapping distance—as ‘anal-retentive’) and my Palm Pilot Centro is my best friend. I’m really good at saving time: I do laundry only once a week, grocery shop once a week, use a meal delivery service and employ a housecleaner every other week. I pay bills on Mondays and run all my errands on Wednesday.
To you Type-B folks, you’re probably shaking your heads and wondering if I need a referral to a good psychiatrist. But when you’re juggling so many things—including writing two novels in one year—it’s the only way to get everything done and remain sane.
Back to the typical day thing—just because there isn’t such a thing in my life doesn’t mean that I don’t start off with a plan. On Thursday mornings (laundry day) my kids know to bring their laundry baskets to the laundry room and I know I’m going to home pretty much all day. And because of that, I know I’ll be able to accomplish my writing goal for that day and I’ll even try to squeeze in a couple more pages to make up for the days in the week where my son had two basketball games two hours away that I went to watch, or for the evening I spent visiting with a book club.
It’s all a bit of give and take, but it’s part of my life. Writing isn’t something I do—it’s who I am. Like being a wife or mother. They all bring big responsibilities and it’s my job to live up to them. Even if it means mainlining caffeine when I’m on deadline because I can’t put the rest of my life on hold to concentrate on just writing.
My eleventh novel The Girl on Legare Street, came out last month. For those of you who think that being a writer means locking oneself in a room to achieve complete peace and silence, you’d be amazed to know that I wrote a lot of that book in my car while heading up the eastern seaboard to visit colleges or at the horse barn where my daughter takes riding lessons. I think being a writer means being able to write when you have to and not just when you want to. It means not believing in the self-indulgence of writer’s block. It means adjusting your day to accommodate your need to get words down on paper.
Leaving that ivory tower has its advantages, too. While taking my daughter to tour the College of Charleston, we also signed up for a haunted walking tour of the city as well as a house and garden tour to view several private historic houses. (See what I mean by how good I am at saving time?) I got so much information and ideas for that book and the next two books in the series, that I started writing the book while I was there because I was so inspired!
The book I just finished On Folly Beach, is set in (of course) Folly Beach, South Carolina. Before starting the book, I’d never been there, but had been reading books about the history of the island. To get more information and a real feel for the setting, I booked a beach house there for a week last summer—so I could squeeze in research while enjoying a family vacation. I was very subtle about my ulterior motives for vacationing in Folly Beach, but I managed to suffer through all that hard work of “research.” Hey, it’s a tough life, but somebody’s got to live it!
Sounds like you have a terrific method, Karen, as far as your working routine goes. Damn, I wish I had some sort of routine that would be effective. However, as a full time admin. assistant, mother of a ten year old (with numerous activities) and a husband who’s around waaay too much, I find it impossible to settle down to any type of schedule.
Congrats on the release of your latest novel and thanx for joining us here at MM.
Karen, I can relate to your comment regarding people who think a “real” writer locks themselves away for that “complete peace and silence.” I recently received a back-handed insult from a co-student who said to me, “Real writers go to retreats and write in peaceful settings.” My response to her was, “Thanks for calling me a fake.”
People who don’t write (even though offensive co-student claimed she did) feel it’s necessary to categorize something they don’t understand. I do what works for me (although not a publishing success, yet). Writing on the run, in crowded malls, or even while driving. For me, I do it where life happens, which doesn’t seem to occur in perfect solitude (at least not in my life).
Best wishes on your continued success and style!
Karen, thanks for blogging with us at Magical today. You’ve inspired me! If you can do all that with kids at home, I should do more.
I’m doing laundry right now, so your Thursday laundry day made me laugh. Christmas is getting in my way, too. It is the season to be merry, but like you, I write whenever I get the chance.
Karen, I love when you visit us at Magical! Your style and schedule is an inspiration to my right-sided brain, and there’s so much gold to be found in your blog. Mainly, to be consistent!
You’re a fabulous writer, and I’m thrilled you write two novels a year.
What you’re doing certainly works! I know your “day in the life” certainly inspired me, and that’s what its all about.
Thanks, LaDonna, for having me back to MM–it’s always nice to be here.
I love schedules, but writing is more important than a schedule (as is my sanity). And sometimes just taking a nap is the absolute BEST use of my time!
Karen, one of the biggest breakthroughs I had as a writer was realizing I could and needed to write whenever I got the chance. Even if that chance was 20 mins between activities. Congratulations on your new book and welcome back to MM.