I’m a stay-at-home mum. It’s incredibly easy to just push my writing for ‘later’, prioritizing a hundred other things first. 

And when ‘later’ comes, I’m too tired to open up my laptop and churn out 1000 words, leave alone 200. 

All day, the ideas would swim around in my head. While I’m preparing breakfast, while I’m playing with my kids, or while I’m taking a walk. 

No, I don’t have a notepad near me at all times to jot down ideas as they dawn on me. No, I’m not in the habit of opening ‘Notes’ on my phone and tapping out my most recent realization about my character. 

You may think, oh she’s just making excuses. Maybe I was. Maybe these were excuses. Maybe I allowed my writing to sit at the bottom of my to-do list for days on end. 

As much as I love writing, I procrastinate. Sometimes, I just want to sit down with a cup of tea and an episode of Teen Wolf. 

But, I had to make time. I still have to make time to write. Work on my new story. Work on this blog. 

So now I do any writing, any book-related ‘housekeeping’ in the morning, immediately after my breakfast- I can’t function on an empty stomach.

Putting my writing at the top of my to-do list was the best way to get it done and ‘out of the way’ before any other obligation fills my time. 

So, how do you stay disciplined? Do you struggle? Do you procrastinate? Or if you’ve found a system to get your daily words in, what is your system and why does it work for you?