So Not a Morning Person

Tip of the Day: Shameless self-promotion tip: check the story of my acceptance letter for Highlights Magazine at MiGWriters.

So I hate mornings. I hate how early my kids have to catch the bus, I hate that I have to physically drag them out of bed, I hate having to walk the dog in freezing weather. But it seems like I'm the most productive when I write first thing in the morning.

The thing is, I have so many other things to do: clean the house, write blog posts, freelance work, watch the kids, cook, read emails and blogs, look for more freelance work. If I start my day doing "the stuff for other people," it easily fills my whole day. But if I start off with my own writing, then I'm motivated to power through it because of all that other stuff hanging over my head. I'll knock out a scene in an hour or hour and a half, knowing I have lots of other things I need to do in the afternoon.

The only drawback is that I'm so not a morning person. It's easy for me to lie on the couch with a cup of tea, promising myself I'll write after breakfast. Or that I'm too groggy to do anything that requires brain cells. Most mornings, though, writing before I do anything else really works.

Now I just have to figure out how to write for longer periods of time without the "OMG I NEED to do stuff for other people first" syndrome kicking in.

When do you get your writing done?

-- Kate, Miss Perfecting the Pages