How To Write A Book When You Have Children

“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.”

― Andy Warhol, The Philosophy of Andy Warhol

After I finished schooling last year, I spent a significant amount of time on self-care, relaxation, and learning about Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine. I researched Shamanism-and I poured myself into the understanding of self-healing. I also devoured everything I could on living a plant-based lifestyle and plant medicine. Studying these areas helped me in many ways. Mainly, I became more connected to nature, to say the least, and understood that we have the absolute power to heal ourselves. We also have the ability to do what we want in life.

After I felt a renewed connection to the worlds of nature, spirit, and motivation, I began to toy around with what avenue of my life I wanted to embark on for my career and future. I completed school–and the world was open for me. To say that I tried and failed multiple times in a short period is an understatement. I wanted to figure out what I was doing–and what I truly enjoyed doing– in the quickest and most efficient means possible, so I could get to my passion. I have many interests, and I tried almost all of them to see what felt right.

Through trial and error, I started writing a book. It happened in little pieces, here and there. I wrote it pretty quickly and had it printed. When I received the proof, I realized the book wasn’t ready yet. At least not prepared yet to give out to the public. So, I’ve been re-working it for the past six months. I am happy to say that it is now complete, and about to be live.

So, how did I do this with four children? Always by my side?

Good question.

I made sure to keep to a daily writing schedule. I would write for an hour in the morning and an hour or more at night–when everyone was asleep. During the afternoon, I would spend about an hour doing research, editing, and reading. So, I made my “writing a book” vision into a new discipline. I did something similar when finishing my dissertation in school, but that was slightly different–since I was in school and working with other people and deadlines. With this, though, I was only answering to myself and worked it out on my own.

The reason why it worked is that I really wanted to do it. Sure, things did go wrong sometimes, stuff happened, I had to take my kids to events and appointments, I had to make dinner… but I love writing and sharing what I have learned, so I would do it no matter what. I could have made my kids an excuse not to do it, or I could have said why should I bother… but my inner self has this passion for writing and thus, I have completed this first part of my vision.

If you have a passion big enough, you will find a way to do it. You will find a way to get there. Nothing will stop you. If nothing is making you feel that way, it’s probably time to think about what your passion might be. You might need to try around 10-20 ideas first. I did. It was challenging. But I knew something was there. Keep trying. If you want to do something strongly enough, find the way to do it. It’s worth it.

“For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the courage to start all over again.”

― Eric Roth, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Screenplay