I had an exchange some years ago with a woman at one of my workshops who said she didn't have time to write.
No time at all? Not an hour a day? Or half a weekend day?
No.
I asked her how many hours she spent cleaning the house, doing laundry, doing dishes, etc.
She said probably about eight hours a week.
I asked whether she could cut that down to four--a little dust isn't the end of the world.
She looked at me as though I'd suggested that she roll in the mud every morning. No, she didn't feel comfortable unless her place was spotless.
I suggested she get a cleaning person to come in once a month to do one week's worth.
She said she couldn't afford that.
I asked how many times a month she went out for dinner.
She said once a week, with different friends (she was single).
I asked whether giving up one of those meals out per month and inviting her friends to come to her place to have a pizza instead would save her enough money to pay a cleaning person to come in to do that week's cleaning and laundry.
She said yes, especially since these meals usually included some glasses of wine beforehand. But it was out of the question: "I really enjoy going out to dinner with my friends! I want to get away from my four walls!"
I said, congratulations. You've just figured out you don't really want to be a writer.
Actually, I put it more diplomatically than that, but that was the gist.
I'm not saying she made the wrong decision. She made the right one--for her.
It may or may not be the right one for you. Your actions will tell.
(If you need some support for your writing, get my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon and other online and offline bookstores.)
