Mom’s Write: Back to School Schedule Changes

The times are a-changing. For many of us, the fall signals the start of a new school year. Some of my teacher friends have been in school for weeks now. Many won’t go back until Labor Day. Just like the start of the summer, the end of the summer might mean schedule changes for your writing time.

If you are a teacher and a writer, the fall means less time for writing. If you are a full-time writer with young children, the fall might just leave you with more time on your hands to write. If your day job doesn’t really change with the seasons, you might still notice that you feel different when summer ends. Cooler temperatures might re-invigorate you or it might be a time when the shorter days plunge you into a more a melancholic state. Whatever your situation, this is a good time of the year to re-evaluate your writing goals.

But 2013 is almost over, you might say. The start of another school year also signals impending holiday madness through the end of the year.

Exactly.

That’s why it’s time to take a discriminating look at how far you’ve come and what you’ve got left to do in 2013.

I work like a maniac on my writing in the summer. I squeeze as much writing as I can into a few short weeks. Re-evaluating for me is looking at what my goals were for the summer. What did I accomplish? What is still left undone?

Then I look at what still is necessary to finish before the end of the year.

If summer has been a more lax time for your writing, then fall is the time when you need to step it up.

Here are some questions to help get you going for the last four months of the year:

1) What have you already accomplished this year?

I hope you wrote down what you’ve been doing, so you can say: I did ____, ____, and _____ already! Hurray!

2) What goals do you have left to work on for 2013?

If you need a post about how to make goals, read this. It’s not too late to make goals for the last few months of the year. This is also a good time to prioritize the most important things left.

3) How can you make the most of your schedule in the next four months?

Pressed for time? You can still write in short spurts of time.  Having to play chauffeur for your kids activities? Pack a writing bag. 

The best way for me conquer crazy schedules and still write is to admit that my time will be crunched, and figure out a way to still write during the crunch. 

What does your fall look like? Do you have a plan for re-connecting with your goals? Do you have a plan for making time to write?