The Talk

This morning my wife and I sat down and had the talk. It wasn't just any talk. It was a writing talk. In short, we both agree that the first thing I NEED to do every morning is to write. I learned this from Ariel Gore's excellent book, "How to Become a Famous Writer Before You're Dead". In it, Gore argues that writing needs to be at the top of the todo list or else it will never get done.

For awhile, I was able to pull this off. I woke every morning a six and wrote for two hours a day. It worked well until some unexpected work events knocked me off my writing feet and I never went back to it.

So here I am now ... trying to rewrite my book between daycare trips, crazy work schedules, house renovations, and life itself and it just isn't working. So we had the talk.

My wife offered to drive my daughter to daycare three times a week, adding an hour's worth of driving to her day so I can have space to write in the morning. I am both floored by her generosity while also feeling incredibly selfish. Much better writers than myself have managed to find the time. She says I'm happier when I write every day which makes her happy to sacrifice. Still, my goal is to avoid such a sacrifice by writing earlier and appreciating her kindness each time she does the make the trip. The challenge is that I'm not a morning person. Not in the least. So now it's my turn to sacrifice. No more late nights for me. Not when she's putting herself out there.

She wants to start the new schedule tomorrow, but I asked to her wait so that I may analyze my time and make the best of it so that such driving isn't necessary. Fingers crossed.

In any case, it feels good to be shifting away from my web development path towards the true goal that keeps the fire burning bright in my eyes.