How can I write with all this SCHOOL?

Page a day. Just 250 words before bed. That was how I managed.

I work 40 hours a week, am in class for 8 hours during the weeknights (2 on Mon, 4 on Tues, 2 on Thurs), spend all of Friday night plus 6-8 hours each on Saturday and Sunday in the library doing homework, and yet...

I find time to blog. I find time to peruse AW's forums. I re-read 4 chapters of last year's NaNo project and am raring to write. Trust me, there's time there even if you don't think there is. Hell I even sleep sometimes.

Isn't that how it always happens? I recently had a couple of weeks in Fiji and my wife didn't let me take the laptop. So what happens? They would be the two weeks I've had the most inspiration in months! Never mind, CS. Keep the ideas bottled up. They mature with age.

Life is pretty busy, no matter what stage of life you're in. You just need to set reasonable goals for yourself, and stick with them. If you can only write on the weekends, write on the weekends. If you keep adding words, you'll reach your goals.

Smish said:

Life is pretty busy, no matter what stage of life you're in. You just need to set reasonable goals for yourself, and stick with them. If you can only write on the weekends, write on the weekends. If you keep adding words, you'll reach your goals.

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Agreed with the bold. During the school year, I usually sacrifice most of my writing time for school and homework, which is more important at this point of my life. I write on the weekends when I can and during days off from school. I'm slow at homework, though, so if you're faster, try to fit in writing where you can. Good luck.

O.k. you've come to the right place. In college, I was a physics major taking 23 hrs per semester of ball busting classes. I was also a Varsity athlete while belonging to the Martial arts club and the Chess club. I also had a girlfriend and still had time to write. So what is the key????....

Time Management.

The busier your are, the harder your classes, the more demands on your time, the more you need to manage your time.

Now, when most people hear time management they think, "Sure, I know how to do it."

No, no you don't. Most people 'think' they know how to do it but they don't.

Get a schedule and a calender. Divide your day into 15 minute blocks and fill out the entire day including the time you eat, shit, shower, shave, sleep, talk to your girl friend, talk to your family, watch tv., do homework, do nothing, etc. etc.

Put absolutely positively every fucking thing in your schedule. Become a Time Management Super Nazi. Have your entire month completely scheduled!

The trick to managing your classes and course loads is to STAY AHEAD. Once you get ahead in your school work, it is so easy to coast and still get that A. But the second you start falling behind, you are fucked. You spend all your extra time and energy trying to keep your head above water.

Our instructors handed us a syllabus that included all the class assignments, readings, homework, etc. on DAY 1 (this is the practice at most colleges). I made it a point to be 1 - 2 lessons ahead of ALL of my classes. This is advantegous on so many levels. When I ran into something that was confusing, I would see the instructor for tutoring on that 'something' before he even covered it in class. Thus, when it came up in class, I've already got it and am looking ahead to the next section.

Comprehension goes way way up. Likewise, you don't have to study so hard for the tests because you know everything.

Now, once you get ahead in your school work and classes, you stay ahead.

As for writing, you schedule that. Again, schedule everything and when your schedule says you write from 9:45 - 10:45, then you get your ass in the chair and you write.

Did I schedule time with my Girlfriend? Yes. And I let her know my schedule and was very clear with her and my friends. Plus they were just as busy as me and had schedules of their own.

You'd be amazed how effective you can be with your time when you have every second of the day laid out in front of you.

Similarly, you get good at guesstimating how long something will take. For instance, Lets say I have a 20 page research paper due.

If I wanted an A+ on the paper, that would take me about 4 hrs of research, 8hrs to write 1 hr to review with professor in tutoring, 2 hrs to incorporate feedback
For a B+ that would take me about 3 hrs of research, 8 hrs to write no tutoring
For a C+ that would take me about 2 hrs of research 7 hrs to write no tutoring

Thus, looking at my schedule, I'd stretch out the 4hrs of research over a week and 8hrs of writing over the weekend and schedule a tutoring session with my professor and have all of this done 1 week prior to the paper being due. Thus, the night before the paper is due, when everyone else is going bat shit, I'm watching T.V. or doing another homework assignment getting ahead in another course.

Schedule every second of the day and you will have no problem finding time to write.

Otherwise, you will never have the time.

Mel...

THe other component of staying ahead is to take advantage of weekends and holidays.

I actually did homework on Friday nights and Saturday mornings. In fact, HOLIDAYS and weekends are KEY to getting ahead in your work.

The other key is getting ahead as soon as possible at the START of the semester when all the classes start off somewhat easy. Burn the first two weekends and use them to 'get' ahead and you'd be amazed how well that will carry you into the semester.

Anyways, sorry for the super long rant.

that's my advice, good luck, hope this helps.

Mel...

I have four classes this semester along with trying to develop a consultancy firm. I can tell you that I don't feel like writing anything other than what I'm assigned to. I'm uninspired at the moment. But I do take 90 minutes each Sunday I'm up to it and write the Flash Fiction Challenge on AW.

It keeps me a bit sharper. I also sometimes will write a paragraph or two here or there but I do waste a lot of time and I've come to the conclusion I've let myself look at the big picture too much lately. I need to stay in the moment and just work each day on the things at hand and not worry about tomorrow. Doing that seems to lift the pressure cooker off me.

I wasn't going to post on AW this weekend at all but I thought perhaps I might be able to help instead of goofing off in OP.

One thing at a time. That's how you'll manage. And I completely agree with Mel, I'm already ahead of assignments and today was day two. But then I'm not a Senior. I'm just starting the first of my major classes and junior year.

Remember, too, that school is not forever, but it needs to be your priority for now. In addition to the great advice about writing minimal amounts and using your weekends, I would add keep a notebook of all your inspiration. That way the ideas will be there when you do have time again.

I found I wrote more when I was in school than when I was out of it. Over the last three months I've had no job, no school, No where to be at all. And got less writing done than when I was juggling scouts, babysitting, 3 hours of homework, cooking dinner, seven hours of school and before school seminary.

Put yourself on a strict schedule. It will help you get more done and keep you from having to deal with the "mood."

Well, I can't relate to writing while in school but I can relate to not having any time. Between a full-time job and two small children I had to carve out time for myself to write after they went to bed or early in the morning before I went to work. It's not easy but it's doable.

I get up at 5:30 and write until my wife and kids wake up. That might be an hour, or maybe two if I'm lucky. My three year old thinks daylight means get out of bed. So, having a specific time set aside helps me. Not to say I don't write at other times.

I work a lot of hours. I'm at home, my wife is at home and we home school. When they are all asleep is the best time for me. Getting up that early in college may be pretty hard though. Even when I had early classes, it was challenge. That's because I was up so late "studying."

If you're really passionate about writing then you'll find time somewhere.

You may have to make some sacrifices in other areas, such as sleep. Get up an hour earlier.

If you want it enough, you will make it happen. Even if you have to be patient for a while till school "cools down" a little, or maybe even wait till you're done with it.

AnonymousWriter said:

You may have to make some sacrifices in other areas, such as sleep. Get up an hour earlier.

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I don't agree with losing an hour of sleep to write. Getting adequate sleep is very important for functioning well in school, at least for me. If you go to bed an hour earlier to offset it, it might be okay, though.

Like others have said...

When I was in my senior year of college, I was taking an overload of classes (20 hours, Physics and Math, btw), worked 40 hours (4 part time jobs, which included running two freshman labs). When I first started I had no idea how I'd fit it all in.

I did.

I did it by prioritizing, organizing and scheduling my time.

Funnily enough, I had more time on my hands for hobbies than when I only took 12 hours of classes and no working. You'd be surprised how efficiently you can get what you want done when your time is tight and you schedule it.

All that being said, it wasn't easy and I had to stay in top form to stay caught up with it.

As others have said, steal time to write. Even if it's just 15 minutes a day, one page...anything. Schedule it in and try to stick with it. You want to write, you'll find the time somewhere, even if it's not a three hour block or pumping out 2000 words. A little written consistently will go a long way.

All this is, of course, sprinkled widely with the standard disclaimer of YMMV. What worked for me may not work for others...yadda yadda...

Good luck!

Take a notepad with you wherever you go. Snag 15 minutes before bed and write. Arrive at a class with 5 minutes to spare? Write. Eating lunch at school? Write. Taking a shower? Write.

Okay, maybe not that last one.

When I was in school, I found that getting up fifteen minutes earlier and writing a page, and then sneaking in writing time while on the bus and while waiting for classes to start, was a good way to get about three pages a day done.

I write during class? oops

Focus on school. Writing time will come. I know it's hard; I'm a sophomore in college and it can be killer. But school is important, too...

I just (ahem) wrote a blog post on that very topic... I'll link it