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Finding the time to write with two boys and five invisible guinea pigs.
By Kim Knox/Rees | July 28, 2008
I’m lucky. I don’t have to rush out to a full time job, as well as having two small monsters and writing. That will probably change next year as my youngest starts school in September…but here I’m going to talk about how I’ve manage to find time to write with rampaging boys destroying my house around me…
With hindsight, writing with a small baby was easy. It didn’t feel like it at the time, with night feeds and the crying and the worry. However, small babies sleep a lot—and I know the rule that you have to rest when your baby does, and I did—but those few minutes when you’re awake and he’s making the really cute baby snores that you could listen to all day, you grab your chance. I used to sit up in my bed and scribble in a notebook while he was in his Moses basket. Maybe I’d get an idea for a new story, attack a dreaded synopsis, or scribble down a few new lines of dialogue. Before my first son was one, I’d managed in about four months to write a 50 000 word short novel, by grabbing those few moments in the day when he was a sleep and I didn’t have to be.
My first son as a toddler has a slightly different story to most people’s, as he’s special needs. He was a very quiet boy who couldn’t talk or understand language in return and was reluctant to engage in social interaction, though he did like me to read to him. So he’d sit on my knee and I’d read him books…sometimes the same one four or five times, before we moved onto the next one. I can still recite Whiff – the Beautiful Big Fat Smelly Warthog from memory. 
Again when he was asleep, I’d grab my chance to write. Or if something engaged him, like bashing on his toy piano, I scribbled.
I was getting more serious about my writing. Any chance I got, I wrote. I had to.
By the time I was pregnant with Monster Number Two, I had another 50 000 word short novel and had sent out the polished partial. I got a request for a full on this one…however, I’d sent the partial without completely finishing the story. Big mistake. Huge. Massive. In fact, almost as massive as me.
I asked my mother for help. She came around for a few hours each day to play with Monster Number One while I finished my book. Which saw me at eight months pregnant, lying on my bed like a beached whale, scribbling in a notebook. Getting behind my desk with my bump was almost impossible and my arms were at full stretch. But in a fortnight I had it finished and out the door. On the day I went into labour, I made sure my mother, who was looking after Monster Number One, knew that there could be a call from a publisher. She had to tell them I was a little busy…
Okay, I could dream. The call didn’t come, but I was to be prepared.
Monster Number One was old enough to go to nursery a few mornings a week and luckily Monster Number Two slept in the mornings, so I had my writing time back. I bashed out a 1000 words at the kitchen table while Number Two slept and before I had to pick up Number One from the nursery a few streets away.
I got a 100 000 word novel written in six months this way.
Thinking about it, ‘Sleeping children helped me write’ should be the title of this piece. When they were sleeping, I didn’t have to join in the singing and dancing on Cbeebies (the BBC’s channel for the under 5’s), crawl around the floor being a horse or build Lego castles.
My monsters are older now and don’t sleep during the day. I write at night, usually after eight when they’ve gone to bed. I play and chat with them. Monster Number One’s language as come on. He’s still behind and becomes very frustrated and angry at times, so he needs a lot of attention. And I also discuss the merits of different Doctor Who monsters. A lot
Both of them love Doctor Who, Monster Number Two especially, and he talks about it endlessly. Okay, it’s completely my fault. But David Tennant and John Simm? I suffer through watching the DVDs of the Master…
I still scribble when I get the chance. I’ve written vampire love scenes as I join in a game of delivering milk to the end of the universe in our time travelling milk float (ie the sofa in the play room) with Monster Number Two and his five invisible guinea pigs. I’ve written on my Dana in a soft play centre, trying not to let passers by read the screen as I’m inevitably writing sex when I’m there. I sometimes even scribble in the schoolyard as I’m waiting to pick up Monster Number One from school. The small spiral notebook and pen is my best friend, after all.
I think what I’m basically saying is that if you have to look after small children, seize the chance to write any time you can. Ideas, a few lines of dialogue, character motivation, write them down, because if you’re like me, zombie children ate your brain and you forget something as soon as you’ve thought it. Then when you have a longer stretch of time, read through, add to your notes or type them up. Write after they’ve gone to bed…and for the people who can do it (I’m not one of them, lol) write before the monsters get up.
Writing, and my realised dream of becoming an author, means I have to fit it into my life anyway I can. I’m making the most of it. Soon, with them both at school, I’m beginning the new challenge of writing, children and a full time other job.
Wish me luck
Kim Knox
http://www.darknessandromance.wordpress.com http://www.kim-knox.co.ukTopics: Kim Knox, Left Behind and Loving It, Phenomena |
July 28th, 2008 at 5:56 am
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July 28th, 2008 at 7:55 am
That notebook is still your best friend even when they’re at school — sitting through dance classes, sports training, etc, becomes much more bearable if you’re scribbling away instead of checking the clock every five minutes. And it’s amazing how much faster the time goes!
I’m often too tired to write once they’ve gone to bed, but I can usually sneak in an hour or so when they’re watching TV. I love children’s TV.
July 28th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
I found that I write more since I had my daughter. There are no more energy bursts (remember energy? I used to have it…) but instead there are at least 400 words _every_ night when she is asleep. It turns out that a few words every day is better than A LOT every month…
July 28th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Fantastic thoughts here, Kim. And they’d work even without having kids. In my case, I have my sister and my nephew (my adopted Monster– he loves his Cynnie). But it’s good when you work outside of the home and have a life to lead. Great thoughts. I luck out because one of my readers is also one of my best friends and will type up whatever I hand write.
July 29th, 2008 at 1:55 am
That’s the story of my life. Though i have a small daugther, a praying mantis, a hermit crab and a full time job…I’m also an insomniac. But kids do add a whole new level to the concept of multi-tasking. Good luck!
July 29th, 2008 at 4:00 am
Thank you for that post. I’m sitting here staring at the screen, too tired to think and wondering how on earth I’m going to manage today’s wordcount. Your post gave me hope.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:20 am
Kim as a mother of one year old boy/girl twins and a three year old who doesn’t know the meaning of a full nights sleep I hear you!!! Grab writing time whenever wherever you can…
July 30th, 2008 at 5:31 am
Sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner. Not so much children as God-awful weather got in the way. I’m in North West England. We’re not supposed to do scorching hot. *grrr*
Marina - yep, if/when I have to sit through Karate or horseriding or in the case of my younger monster, uber-drama lessons, then my trusty notebook is going with me. I have one in every coat pocket, just incase *snort*
Sara - I remember energy. I think it was a fad I had in the 90s. And yes, a few words every day does it for me too. I started Sweat with Sven last year, and it got me into writing 750 words a day. I’ve kept to it since - with the odd lapse, lol
Cyn - yay, on someone else typing for you. The sides of my hands are shiny from the front of my Mac. Though I suppose it’s better than the callus I had on second knuckle of my middle finger when I used to handwrite everything. Yes, I’ve had this discussion with writer friends and we compared hands, lolol
Suzanne - cool pets. My younger monster has a host of invisible pets as a very *BIG* hint that he wants a real one. Did I mention he also has 2 invisible cows called Milky and Dilky. They’re the suppliers of the milk that goes to the end of the universe…
Merrilee - I’m glad my post gave you hope
Good luck with your word count.
Natalie - *hugs * on the non-sleeping 3 yo. We’ve been lucky as after a few months they both settled down to full sleep. Though younger monster did enjoy vomiting most nights. He had a kidney problem that’s sorted. Now we find him asleep on the floor on his dinosaur mat. He rolls out of bed…a lot.
And it’s been a long comment. I’ve written about 850 today and got my characters through a scene transition - hate those, lol -so I’m off to do other things *grin*
July 31st, 2008 at 12:40 pm
*hugs
I hear ya on the writing during the kids shows LOL
it’s awkward sometimes
August 8th, 2008 at 12:48 pm
[...] — I hope this one comes back. I really enjoyed it and it was down when I wrote it. Day One - Day Two - Day Three - Day Four - Day [...]