“B.I.C. Time”

Whenever I teach at conferences, I’m often asked the same question: “How do you write so many books a year?” I jokingly answer, “Lots of Diet Pepsi and Peanut M&Ms.” But the truth is, it takes determination, drive, prayer, a support system, and B.I.C. time, otherwise known as “Butt In Chair” time. Let’s face it; if this children’s writing thing were easy, everyone would be a writer. It takes commitment and sacrifice, but you can do this.

Part of making time for writing is changing your mentality. If writing for children is more than just a hobby for you, treat it as such.  If you don’t put it on your calendar, you probably won’t do it. So, get a planner (I like the Happy Planners) and make a writing date with yourself. Here are three more strategies to help you carve out more B.I.C. time in your already busy schedule.

FIND THE TIME

On a deadline, ready for B.I.C time

If you’re a morning person, get up an hour or two earlier and spend that time working on book proposals, crafting articles, or writing those all-important follow-up thank you notes to the editors, agents, and other faculty members who poured into you at a recent conference.

If you get an hour for lunch, why not take your personal laptop with you to work and spend those minutes working on your own assignments?

Eat a protein bar instead of going out for lunch. You’ll get work done and lose weight! It’s a win/win! And, if you’re a night owl like me, write at night. Once the house is quiet (when most everyone else is in bed) spend those magical minutes cranking out copy.

If none of those options work for you, how about participating in what I call a “Super Saturday?” Reserve one or two Saturdays a month for all-day binge writing. Schedule that time in your planner or add them to your smartphone calendar—just like you would any other appointment—and plan for eight hours of uninterrupted writing time. NOTE: This is not the time for Facebook stalking or playing computer games.

If you have children at home, ask your spouse or another relative to take them to the zoo or the library or anywhere but where you’ll be writing. And, then use that time wisely. Consider those minutes sacred and write like crazy. You’ll start to look forward to it—I promise! And you’ll get so much done!

BECOME ACCOUNTABLE

Writing partners keep each other accountable

Becoming accountable to someone on this writing journey is another important strategy to helping you meet deadlines, accomplish writing goals, and fulfill those publishing dreams. So, get an accountability partner—maybe someone you met at a previous writers’ conference— and have weekly or monthly “checkups.” Be tough on each other and help one another inch toward those goals! (A writing critique group is also good for keeping you honest, and you should have one of those already.)

Another way to become accountable is simply to set a deadline for yourself. Even if you’re not writing an article for a magazine that has a deadline attached, give yourself a deadline. And, reward yourself when you hit that deadline! Treat your freelance career like a 9-to-5 job—deadlines motivate us to quit procrastinating.

Depending on how you’re wired, goals may not be enough to motivate you. But, goals plus deadlines should do the trick. Set goals big enough to make you sweat a little and create realistic (yet pressing) deadlines to keep your butt in the chair.

MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR TIME

My B.I.C. chair

Speaking of B.I.C. time, you may have to “outsmart” yourself in order to get your writing hours in each week. Spend a few minutes thinking about your habits, your excuses for not writing, your normal routine, etc. Now, you’re going to have to simply “outsmart” yourself into logging B.I.C. time each week. For example, I know that once my butt is in the chair, I can write for many hours straight—no problem. But when I allow myself to get out of the house—even if it’s just for a food run—I’m gone. Fifteen minutes turns into four hours. I know myself. What starts off as a quick trip to pick up Diet Pepsi ends up in a shopping trip to Goodwill or Plato’s Closet, and before I know it, the whole day is gone. So, I outsmart myself by running all of my errands on the same day.  I’ll go grocery shopping, get my nails done, take the dog to the groomer, and drop off those bags of clothes to Goodwill all in the same day. Whatever doesn’t get done on my errand day will just have to wait until the following week’s errand day.

The rest of the week when I have the urge to “get out of the chair,” I resist that temptation, knowing those other errands can wait until my next errand day. That’s the deal I make with myself, and somehow that works for me. Find what works for you!

When I practice all three of these strategies, I accomplish so much more, and you will, too. Bottom line, you have to want this writing career, and you have to be willing to work at it every chance you get. It may not be easy, but I can promise you, it’s worth it.

Now, go sit your butt in the chair and write!

Michelle Medlock Adams is an award-winning journalist and best-selling author of over 90 books with close to 4 million sold. Her many journalism and book awards include top honors from the Associated Press, AWSA’s Golden Scroll for Best Children’s Book, and the Selah Award for Best Children’s Book. Michelle currently serves as President of Platinum Literary Services, a premier full-service literary firm; Chairman of the Board of Advisors for Serious Writer, Inc.; and a much sought-after speaker at writers conferences and women’s retreats all over the United States.  

When not writing or teaching writing, Michelle enjoys bass fishing and cheering on the Indiana University Basketball team, the Chicago Cubbies, and the LA Kings.

 Michelle is celebrating the recent release of her books, Get Your Spirit On!, Fabulous & Focused, Dinosaur Devotions, and C Is for Christmas, and she’s anticipating the upcoming release of What Is America? (Worthy Kids) and They Call Me Mom (Kregel), a devotional book she co-authored with Bethany Jett.