Curious if anyone else struggles with this and what you do/have done about it? Perhaps this is a form of writer's block, or procrastination, or simply too little time (I do have a full-time, part-time, and freelance job - that's three for those of you counting at home), but lately, it's something I've been really struggling with finding a balance of. First, I LOVE to read. I mean, really love it. Getting lost in a story is a wonderful feeling. I'm building a home library and collecting books like a madman...all sorts of genres, styles, fic, nonfic, you name it. I like sponging up words - I think it makes us better writers. I view reading sort of as "study time," and always have a notebook handy to jot down interesting things I read for later inspiration. The problem is, when I get home at night (like right now), I feel I should be working on my WIP, but I also am in the middle of multiple books and I look forward to just lounging in my chair, reading until bedtime. But then I feel as though I should've written instead. If I write, I feel I missed out on reading time. In either case, I feel less accomplished than I should, despite most days having worked all three jobs. Has anyone else experienced something similar? There's only so much time during the day of course. But juggling an insanely busy work schedule is hampering both my reading and writing time. How to find a balance?
Maybe write about what you are reading? Sometimes its good to work on small projects like reviews or studies of particular elements that worked or didn't. Then you not only improve your writing skills, but you get to work through a short problem writing piece and come back to your work possibly with fresh new tools to use. Sometimes it's good to just set things down. I understand juggling the schedule myself. I do this with a full-time, and MA degree, and a family. It gets tough, but you can do it.
I'm trying to phase in snippets of things like that as you suggested. It works a little. I should've added that ALL 3 of my jobs are writing jobs. I'm blessed to be able to do that. But lately it's like I don't have the energy to write my own stuff after writing for others all day and evening. So I'd rather read instead and clear the head. That sounds excuse-ish though. Maybe the answer is a vacation
Burnout is a real thing friend. Overdoing a passion kills it. I'd watch out for that. Maybe it's best to have one of those jobs or something that isn't writing as well, just to mix things up. My job is a tech field, so writing is more fun when I get back to writing from work.
Ahh, the dreaded "B" word. It's entirely possible. If I could describe it, it's a feeling of "fog head." I certainly don't want to kill the passion. I just feel unbalanced right now. Then again, three jobs and two books in the past year...maybe the "B" word is creeping in.
IMHO: Life isn't about success, it's about satisfaction. If you love reading too much to write, you're doing the right thing; doing something you love. If you feel you need to be productive in spite of reading, it's a false happiness. Personally I think you should only write if you have to. If that's the key to satisfaction. It seems that reading is your priority. That's ok.
I love writing, equally though. It's just that ideally I want to be able to do both. It's just been difficult lately to write what I want when I make my living off writing what I have to. Reading on the other hand is useful leisure. I just feel better if I'm constantly working on something as well -- which, I am nonstop -- so now as I type that, everything I'm saying sounds like I'm a rambling loon. Maybe I do need a break after all.
But what about those who find a lot of satisfaction from success? That's generally a me problem. Sometimes we do have to push to reach that satisfaction.
We do, but the key is still satisfaction though. Whatever that looks like, be it success, or a simple life, or taking pleasure in little things, or a healthy family, or changing the world. In this case if the desire for success out-weights the joys of reading, that should be motivation enough.
Just do the first thing that comes up to you and commit to it. If You get home and it hits you to read, then read and dont question it.
i generally write from 9-12 every night (this week is a bit different because i'm on leave so i'm getting writing done in the day time) or until i hit at least 2k words... outside of that time i do whatever else i want or need to do
I spend a lot of my work time coaching others on priorities and the “work-life” balance. I really appreciate what has been said about success and would like to comment on the concept before addressing the bibliophilic struggles for which I wholeheartedly empathize. Success is a process, and any accolade that comes along only reaffirms that process. Establishing that process in a way that satisfies our needs isn’t easy, but exploring what works best can be exciting. This leads me to the question at hand. I love reading even more than eating, and forgetting to do the latter while partaking in the former is a regular occurrence. To avoid starving, I ensure one or two specific reading time during the day, allowing for addition reading if I’ve come to the end of the day completing all I wanted to do. This leads me to writing, which for me at least, is significantly more difficult and less fun. If I want to establish that part of my process I have to actively engage in it until is second nature. Like Hemingway say “Writing is easy, just sit there and bleed.” In summary, be disciplined in that which comes easy, and dogged in that which does not. Good luck in this struggle we all share!
I'm not a professional writer or anything, but I think midwife (auto correct corrected me and I ain't arguing) is right. It's all about work life balance and discipline. You love reading, but no matter how related it is to your work, it's not actually work. It doesn't put food on the table and you are saying it's actively hindering your ability to do your job. So now you have couple of choices, you can dial back your writing, or dial back your reading for writing. You could be experiencing burnout which is causing you to procrastinate with reading, or you could be more interested in reading right now, or reading habits interfering with work. But another way is to mentally separate the two activities so that you don't actively associate them. Don't think of reading as work unless you actively make a conscious decision to allocate time to research those books for your project. By doing this, you can categorise work from play and your attitude and motivation will be different towards those activities. But if you make excuses to your self like reading is a part of your job, you will obviously avoid working because you would lie to yourself about how reading is your job. Even though it doesn't put food on the table.
Ideally and if writing is a 'need' and not a 'want', you'll find thoughts of your story intruding into leisure reading. For example if you read a scene where you are stunned that someone could have written this just perfect. If that happens, mark the pages to analyse later - how that author did it and what you can do to make your own work better. Structure, paragraph breaks, word choices. Analysing that perfect scene will still be pleasure, because after all you loved to read it and so will not object to reading it again. You'll have killed two birds with one stone .
I agree, but OP seems like is overloading in the writing process. Having 3 jobs directly related to writing and then a hobby where he's reading and "still" thinking about writing is a lot. At least for me it would be too much and it could be why he's having issues now.
If you’re struggling to find a balance, then it’s time to give something up. Like you, my reading time is a high priority. My writing time has a set time period every day. My suggestion? Give up your day job; one or both (if possible)
Before I sit down and write something, I actually read a lot. Sometimes I don't have the inspiration, and in order to just start writing, I need to read dozens of pages of my favorite writers. Sometimes I don't have enough imagination to finish a scene in a story, so I can leave writing and return to it after reading a few of Chekhov's stories, for example.
And there you have the dilemma faced by everyone who turns a hobby or passion into a job: it becomes work and work is properly left behind at the end of the day in favor of relaxation and other pursuits. If you get home and want to read, then read. Right now it sounds like you're trying to force a fourth part time job onto yourself by insisting you should be writing instead. After I retired from a job that involved a lot of writing to order, I took a couple of years off to see if I could make a living as a freelancer. Yep, I could, but it required a lot of hustling for jobs and turning away from writing for my own satisfaction. I decided to take a couple of part time day jobs (both of which include writing) in order to give myself time and space to write what I like. It has been a good balance for me. I don't get tired of writing, so writing to order and writing for fulfillment don't cancel each other out. The latter is my relaxation from the former, or I wouldn't do it.
Definitely one of life's best truisms. I say truism because lets be honest, no matter how much you love your work, there's still WORK involved, and often work = time. I love what I do (all 3 of my jobs) but it is exhausting and there simply isn't always enough time for other things.
This is only true if you can do it without compromising on your principles. If you have to conform to certain industry standards that force you to do the work in a way you wouldn't choose to, then it will have the opposite effect. What it means is be careful—you may THINK you'd enjoy a certain job, but once you start you might discover the job isn't what you expected, and that you don't get to exercise creative freedom.
