Most people think that writing is solitary activity, but I disagree. It’s true I mostly write while I’m alone, but it takes my whole family working together in order to get those precious minutes to write.

You need an understanding spouse because writing takes a ton of time.  There have been so many nights or weekends that either my wife or I played babysitter so the other one could finish up a project.  It’s really important to have an understanding partner who can give you that extra time.  (Thanks honey!)

Publishing takes money.  Sure it’s free to print eBooks and we certainly don’t spend much on pens and paper.  However, when you’re competing for reader’s attention with Harry Potter, it’s important to have a professionally edited book and attractive cover.  Since I spell about as well as a rhino can paraglide, that means we need to hire an editor.

Writing requires understanding friends.  I used to see friends every other night.  We went out to eat, to movies, mini-golfing, etc… now we’re lucky to see two or three friends a month.  A new baby contributed a lot to that change, but writing also affected free time.  My wife and I have given up most of our other hobbies (and TV) to make room for writing.

You need to involve everyone.  Since my wife and I spend so much of our energy writing, we think it’s important to involve the whole family the writing process.  We talk about our plots over dinner and what projects we want to work on next.  Since we’re diverting time away from people, it’s nice to let them know why.  If they’re involved in the creative world, they’ll hopefully understand why you need extra time to polish a draft.

Writing is fun, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. We write because we love writing… that’s about all there is to it. Thankfully, the world has never been better for story tellers.  With the print on demand revolution and emergence of eBooks, now is the perfect time to tell your story.  So pick up your pen.  Hug your spouse and start writing.