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The debate about whether working mothers or stay-at-home moms are better parents continues on television.

The world is large enough for all mothers. Homemakers who write and working parents who write all have a place with their words and children.

I have been a homemaker and writer and now a working mom and writer.

Some people will treat your writing as a cute hobby you do in your spare time.

Many mothers and fathers have written for years. It is one passion that will not go away when the baby cries.

The miracle work, beyond parental discoveries, begins with how writers manage their time.

The reality:

Characters and stories speak in your mind. You feel like a crazy person. You need to jot  your idea on paper, a napkin with a spotted chocolate stain or your hand.

There is not enough time when your child is shouting, “Mommy, look,” to find anything else, but you still got to write it.

You Try:

You learn to find quiet time separated from everything else in your busy schedule. It might be night-time, early in the morning—or if your child is still young enough—during their nap time.

Perhaps your children have reached an age when they’re doing homework after school and you’re with them. Write while they work.

If you’re at work, maybe you have an extra hour or half-hour during lunch.

An editor who worked with me during the early stages of Sons of the Edisto said, “If you love something enough, you will make time for it.”

Sacrifices:

One of the most difficult tasks is to take yourself seriously. Only when you take yourself seriously as a writer will other people begin to consider you, the writer, in a thoughtful manner.

That means giving something up.

This week I had to reiterate to my parents that I could not continue to co-teach Sunday school. My mother has not been happy with my decision and now believes I cannot commit.

If you read last week’s goal list, you know I want to accomplish much in writing. I work two—soon to be three—part-time jobs, cook, spend as much time with my son as possible and write.

Inspiration:

The great thing about being a parent is you can look in front of you and find inspiration.

A boy and girl in about the fourth grade waited in line for the bathroom at a restaurant today. They began talking to me. The little girl waited, and the boy tried to distract her with an arm raising contest. Each one told me why they would win.

“You should have a staring contest.”

They loved the idea, and turned to the mirror behind them. The kids stared at their reflections.

“How will you tell whose winning?” I asked.

“I know I’m winning,” the boy said. “I haven’t blinked.”

Every person has different ways of managing time. I am still learning mine with an ever-changing schedule.

When do you write?

By Rebecca T. Dickinson

Tagged: Mother, the working mother, working mom, writing advice for moms, writing stay-at-home mom