Something that has always amazed me is how authors manage to write and have careers as authors while working full-time or handling other obligations. Today, Sara Holland, author of the Everless duology and the upcoming Havenfall, is here to share her tips for balancing the two!

 

Tips for Balancing Writing and Work

by Sara Holland

If you follow authors online, you probably know that a lot of us—if not most—are not full time writers; we have day jobs and/or family obligations that we have to juggle with our books. Myself, I have a 9 to 5 office job in the publishing industry. I don’t have kids, and I’m really lucky that my job is flexible; I can take a day off to rest or travel when I need to. But it’s still a struggle sometimes. When people ask how I balance the two, I never quite know how to answer, because I don’t feel like I’ve got it figured out. But I have developed a few rules of thumb over the years that have helped me maximize my time, and do better work whether I’m at the office or at home.

1. Plan out your writing sessions in advance, where you’ll start and what you want to get done. Outlining really helps me with this—I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I wish I’d started doing it sooner so that I didn’t have to throw away so many drafts. 
2. Establish a special space solely for working. It doesn’t have to be a whole separate room, but if you can get a tiny desk that you tuck away in the corner of your house or apartment, that can be really helpful in training your brain that when you sit down there—now it’s time to write. Decorate your writing space with story moodboards or inspirational quotes. If possible, tell your loved ones that when you’re there, you’re unavailable unless it’s urgent. And don’t sit there to watch TV or browse Instagram—move those activities somewhere else, so that your desk is a place you only associate with writing. 
3. Along similar lines, have a ritual to signal your brain that it’s time to do whatever it is you need to be doing. For instance, every day when I get to the office, the very first thing I do is wash my hands (gotta get those subway germs off) and make a cup of coffee. When I get home and it’s time to write, I put on my playlist associated with the story and listen to a few songs to root me in the story world. 
4. Be intentional in how you spend your time. Don’t cut out all the things that give you pleasure—that’s a surefire way to burn out—but recognize what’s adding to your life and what isn’t. For instance, watching Schitt’s Creek gives me genuine joy and always puts me in a good mood, so I don’t beat myself up if I want to spend one evening binging the latest season. On the other hand, there’s my addiction to dumb iPhone games, which—much as I hate to admit it—doesn’t really add anything to my life. So when my phone automatically deleted Merge Dragons the other day for some reason, I took it as a sign from the productivity gods and didn’t re-download. 
5. Do not sacrifice sleep! This is a big one for me—I often trick myself into thinking it’ll be fine if I stay up all night to get more words in. (It worked when I was in college, didn’t it?) But I’m not twenty-one anymore, and missing sleep always messes me up for the next day or three. Plus, if we’re being honest, the words I write in a 3 AM sleep-deprived frenzy probably aren’t going to be that good anyway. 🙂

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About the Book

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A safe haven between four realms. The girl sworn to protect it--at any cost.

Hidden deep in the mountains of Colorado lies the Inn at Havenfall, a sanctuary that connects ancient worlds--each with their own magic--together. For generations, the inn has protected all who seek refuge within its walls, and any who disrupt the peace can never return.

For Maddie Morrow, summers at the inn are more than a chance to experience this magic first-hand. Havenfall is an escape from reality, where her mother sits on death row accused of murdering Maddie's brother. It's where Maddie fell in love with handsome Fiorden soldier Brekken. And it's where one day she hopes to inherit the role of Innkeeper from her beloved uncle.

But this summer, the impossible happens--a dead body is found, shattering everything the inn stands for. With Brekken missing, her uncle gravely injured, and a dangerous creature on the loose, Maddie suddenly finds herself responsible for the safety of everyone in Havenfall. She'll do anything to uncover the truth, even if it means working together with an alluring new staffer Taya, who seems to know more than she's letting on. As dark secrets are revealed about the inn itself, one thing becomes clear to Maddie--no one can be trusted, and no one is safe . . .

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