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Karla Akins- Pastor's wife, Writer, Biker |
My life is not a quiet one. That doesn’t
mean I don’t yearn for the solace of a nunnery. I do. But God has not allowed
that to be my reality yet. In fact, I’m not sure I’ve ever lead what one would
call a quiet life.
My life is out loud,
extra-cow-bells-all-the-time, out-of-control chaos. It’s not because I’m
irresponsible. I just happen to live with twins with autism, a son with
bipolar, a mother-in-law with Alzheimer’s and I’m a pastor’s wife and full-time
college student. My husband himself has ADD--Attention Deficit Disorder—so that
means I have to help him remember details of his schedule as well as mine.
How do I write in all of this?
I just do.
Writing doesn’t happen because I
suddenly get the muse. As a Christian, I don’t have a muse. I have the Creator
of all things Who inspires me. Here are some things I incorporate into my
writing life to enabled me to keep the dream alive.
1. I
write when everyone else is asleep. I’ve learned how to take 20-minute naps
during the day to make up for any sleep I lose either early in the morning or
late at night. 20-minute naps are more restoring to me than hours of sleep as
long as I take one about every 4 hours or so. I can sleep sitting up!
3. I
go to my office and shut the door. This doesn’t always work because I’m often
needed, but if I’m on a deadline I shoot them all some stink eye and they’ve
learned when I’m serious about being left alone.
4. If
I’m on a super-serious deadline and absolutely can’t be interrupted I leave the
house and go to the library or church office, depending on my mood and how
comfy I want to be.
5. In
between tasks I stop and switch laundry, make a meal, or perform some other
chore. Chores still have to be done even though I’m supposedly writing
“full-time.”
6. I
use my iPhone’s timer to keep track of how long I’m doing a task. I time myself
a lot for chores and race against the clock. Seems silly, but it motivates me
to get things done instead of procrastinating.
7. I
use FlyLady
to help me keep my house organized. I’ve used her from the very beginning of
her mailing list—at least 14 years!
8. If
my day doesn’t start with Bible reading and prayer, I waste time. For some
reason if I start my days with time with the Lord, He stretches the time and
makes things happen so much easier!
9. I’ve
had to learn to write interrupted. I write in 15 minute increments if I have to.
Every little bit of writing counts and adds up. I don’t have the luxury of
hours and hours of pondering and dreaming, so I take what I can get. Did you
know that Agatha Christie wrote that way? She wrote on her breaks while she
worked as a nurse.

Biography:
Karla Akins is a pastor's wife, mother
of five, and grandma to five beautiful little girls. Her debut novel, ThePastor’s Wife Wears Biker Boots was released on August 9. She also writes narrative biographies for
middle grades such as Sacagawea
and JacquesCartier.
Q4U: How do you write in the midst of your busy life? I’d love to know your secrets!
4 comments:
Loved the post! How organized you must be, and what a world you live in! Enjoyed the post.
I so appreciated your encouraging words...especially the reminder that even 15 minutes of writing is better than no writing at all! :-)
One tool that I use to capture ideas and to stay organized is "Evernote". When an inspiration floats through my mind, I need to write it down or I'll definitely forget it! So, whether I'm at work, my daughter's game, in the store, or cooking dinner, I can reach for my smartphone or laptop and add it to my lists. It'll be waiting for me when I have my 15-minutes to write further! Blessings, Sharon
Good bunch of info, Karla! See, these are the things I'm going to pick your brain about... very soon! ;-]
I'm so glad I found your article today! It was very encouraging! I needed to hear how someone else managed it all :-)
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