Managing time and family as writer

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Content, content content! the marketing gurus cry! But what do you do if you don't want to develop an audience and market? After all, we as writers do our best work in the quiet hours, alone and undisturbed. Most of us don't like to meet new people or to explore the world outside our little caves. But in this industry, it's not the best writers that thrive, but the ones who know how to market.

So we find ourselves forced out of our shells, beyond the walls of our comfortable little dwellings only to run into yet another problem: Time. 

Most authors starting out don't get that fabled million dollar deal. If they get a publishing deal at all, it's usually without any advance whatsoever. Then there are the self-published folks who shell out their own cash (a brave move) just so their books will see the light of day. This means having a primary job or other source of income is a must. And as for marketing? If you're expecting your publishing company to fill in that gap, think again. It's rough out there and authors are expected to do as much if not more marketing than their publishers. 

I don't know what to tell the authors who are unwilling to branch out and socialize at all. Unfortunately, we need readers to rationalize our existence. But to those lacking time, I do sympathize. 

I am more than just a writer. I'm an employee, a teacher, a nurse, a soap-maker, a volunteer, a homesteader, but most importantly, I'm a wife and a mother. My family comes first. 

I'm blessed to have a husband that works full-time so that I can spend most of my days with our kiddo. While I do work two days a week, it's nothing like the schedule full-time moms have to deal with. I know that I am blessed in this regard, and I love the adventures that this life opens me up to. I had a balance: I would write in the evening and spend the rest of my time with the people closest to me. But now marketing has taken a bite out of my time and I find it leaking into my day, taking me away from my son. 

So, that's going to require some changes. 

Sacrifices are an inevitable part of life whether they are consciously made or not. Either time with my son will be sacrificed, or time with my book will be. Now, this is not to say that I'm letting this writing dream go. My book, SURVIVING MIDAS is coming out December 1st, and I want it to succeed, but not at the expense of my family. So I'm going to get up early, write my blog, and then move forward with my day without a look back. 

I'm not going to shoot for the recommended ten posts per day. I'm not going to obsessively hit refresh on Twitter. I'm going to wall off my marketing time and pursue my other dreams as well. The chips will fall where they may, but if at the end I look up to see a well-adjusted, strong, kindhearted man, I will have succeeded in life.

I will have mothered a good man. 

And that will be my success. 

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