Life Gets In The Way!

When I first began writing seriously, it was as though I were treasuring a precious secret, not unlike a newly pregnant woman who knows the world will find out sooner or later but is happy to keep it to herself just now.  I loved the writing process; I loved my characters and I loved my story.  Any time I could steal away, be it late at night or early in the morning, I was writing.  It was a heady experience.

It was also a unique time of my life.  We had lived in central Florida for about a year, but we hadn't yet made an friends or social connections.  Things were pretty quiet.  I wasn't driving kids to classes or activities.  The freedom was amazing.

But as often happens, life changed.  Suddenly we had friends, we had commitments. . .and finding dedicated writing time became more of a challenge.

I managed to finish the first book (writing in the stands during baseball practices, in the middle of the night and in various doctors, orthodontists and dental offices) and then somehow also wrote the second.  But I have to admit, I'm finding the third a little more complicated.

This year my life has been busier than ever.  My second daughter just graduated from high school at our local homeschool convention.  We have house guests coming for the month of June.  We're getting more involved in our new church, and that's all in addition to the normal activities of homeschooling, helping my oldest daughter and my husband with their papers, housework and child rearing.

And then add in the additional writing opportunities and commitments.  I'm writing several blogs and articles for online publications, not to mention query letters, summaries and synopses.

It can be really overwhelming.  I'm yearning to get back to some simplicity in my days so that I can dedicate my more wakeful hours to writing.  This summer looks promising.  My goal is to have book three finished by the end of the summer and to have an extraordinary amount of queries out in the world by the end of June.

For now, I'm in Augusta, Georgia visiting friends, and I've realized that even when I don't have time to actually get words onto the page, I can still do character research. . .the world is full of inspiration!