It would be the most fantastic thing in the world if writing could be my whole life. I could spend my days working from the comforts of my own home in my little writer’s nook, putting down on paper my ideas, building character development, and creating plots and twists for my manuscript, but for now, that is just a dream.

I still need to work full-time. There is no other option currently for me to do writing as my full-time career, so writing is my second job or hobby, as others might see it. I have to organise my time well in order for me to have both aspects of my life fulfilled… and that doesn’t account for the busy family life and all the everyday expectations placed on me by being a mother and wife.

It’s a balancing act, and for me to work and write, I had to look at setting realistic goals so I could succeed in doing both. My job is hectic; it is busy, and there are many demands and pressures to see to daily. All I could think about was writing and having time to write the ideas that were constantly running into my mind about improving the story or restructuring the sequence of events to create a better flow. I knew I would burn out if I didn’t organise my time better.

I had to set myself realistic expectations, as I could easily spend all of my time outside of work writing… I could write and research all night and still think about my book even as I tried to sleep. It felt all-consuming, and I loved it, but I knew I couldn’t maintain that level of pressure and stress that I was putting on myself.

Then there were the social platforms. I needed new content to keep my followers interested and ensure my book was at the forefront of their minds when released. I kept looking for answers… ways to make the writing dream a reality, and knowing that if writing did become my full-time job, it would not be in the near future… it would be some time before that could be a reality.

So, I set small goals. I would write 1000-1500 words daily when I felt I was in a place to do that and the writing was flowing, or at least 500 words if I felt I was hitting a block. I would write the chapters I felt more confident and enthusiastic about, even if that meant the story wasn’t written in the order that would later become the final draft. I ensured I looked at my manuscript most days, and when I felt I could not write… I edited.

Now, I know many of you would disagree with editing while the first draft is still being written. Still, I like to go back to the first chapters and tidy them up as I go along, knowing these are the words I will use to create social media content and the chapters that would later be sent out to literary agents. I needed these to be as clean and well-written as possible. These were the parts of my book that were going to help me achieve the completed manuscript.

I have lots more to say about my writing process and tips for making the best use of your time whilst working to make the writing a reality, and I will also write about my experiences so far in reaching out to literary agents. Writing is a minefield, and I learned so much from reading and watching other authors’ journeys on their social media platforms, things I had not considered as I prepared to publish.

But the book is now written and that feels amazing! The Last Coven