How to Develop a Writing Habit as a Single Mom: Start Small

You can do a lot in 15 minutes. I’ve written 157 trashy romance books in 15 minute sprints. Before I wrote in sprints, before I was a mother, I would sit down with endless time in front of me. I’d often be at coffee shop with my coffee ready to write! In truth, before I became a mom, I never finished a single book. I started many but finished none. And that’s when I had lots of time to burn.

Then, I became a single mother and wanted to make some extra money. Making extra money for my daughter was my motivation. 157 books later, I’m a more productive writer than I ever was when I had no time constraints hampering me.

How did I do it?

15 minutes at a time.

It may be daunting to figure out where you can grab those 15 minutes of writing a day.

Here are some suggestions:

1. Morning

If you can get up 15 minutes before your child wakes up, this can work for you. If your child is an early riser with you, this may not work.

2. Evening

When your child goes to bed, get to writing. If you’re not too tired and mentally drained from your work day, this could be where you grab your 15 minutes.

3. Screen time

As luck would have it, that’s about the length of one episode of Daniel Tiger or Paw Patrol. I don’t know what your household rules are regarding screen time, but if you allow at least 15 minutes, this can be the time where you can get your writing in when your kids are occupied.

4. Lunch time

I work from home and homeschool my daughter. I fit in a 15 minute writing sprint while both my daughter and I eat lunch. This is not my most efficient writing sprint of the day, but any words written are better than no words written.

Writing Fast

If I’m really focused and prepared, I can write ~800 words in 15 minutes. On average, I hit about 500. How am I able to write so quickly? Practice, practice, practice.

I’ll go into the techniques I use to write faster in my next blog post.

If writing is not your thing, maybe there is a hobby you want to fit in to your busy single mom schedule. Try 15 minutes at a time.