5 Reasons Why I'm Not Writing

I adore my latest writing project. I love the characters and the setting. The idea makes my brain fizzle - in a good way. And yet I am struggling to put words down. I have a few reasons why writing is so difficult at the moment.

1. Kids

Adorable bundle of cuteness (ABC) keeps waking up at 4 - 5am which is just peachy. ABC then goes full pelt all day long until crashing at 7pm. She may or may not wake up seventeen million times during the night. This repeats. Day in, day out. So when I do get to sit in front of a computer screen, nine times out of ten the eyeballs start drifting and the hands go limp on the keypad. I've been known to delete emails I wanted. Annoying.

My darling boy (MDB) is a treasure, with a mouth that never stops working asking the same question at least one hundred times before moving onto the next. And there are the trains. And the continual requests for food. And the cars. And the constant channel hopping (thanks Daddy for telling him how to use the remote). 

Then mix the two together - yay! (I must say I do love them both dearly and would never be without them however they do not allow for any writing time)

2. Netflix

It's not my fault. Auto episode roll on means I don't have to move. 

3. To-Be-Read List

Goodreads is a wonderful enabler to a book lover. You get to add books to your want to read list when you see them in a magazine or someone recommends it or you happen to fall into a bookshop. The series hyperlink means you won't miss any books and can add that entire 12 book fantasy collection to your very small, hardly worth mentioning, over 5k TBR list.

Then my fellow indie authors keep writing great books that I have to add.

Then there are books on the craft of writing that I have to read.

Plus the books from the three book clubs I belong to. What can I say, I love books. 

4. Social Media

Not only is social media a huge drain on a person's time when they're not using it to promote their books - and before you shake your head at me, you know I'm right. How many times have you lost an hour to scrolling without realising it? There are notifications, updates, regular posts, shares, likes and a myriad of other things to keep up with. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining - I love my job. It's just that at the moment I'm social mediaing and not writing.

5. Sleep

Gosh darn it that pesky shut-eye just won't go away, will it? The less you get the harder it is to function, the more you get the more tired you feel, at first anyway. I often fall into bed thinking of all the things I haven't done and get up in the morning groaning at all the things I need to catch up on. 

Now don't get me wrong, I love my life. I love my hubby and my kids and sometimes I even love being so exhausted I can't even think straight. But I'd really, really like a bit of writing time to work on my next book. If that's alright. You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.