Sometimes your health tanks and your plans disintegrate. Your job might require more resources than you have. Your world might be the bubble around your sofa. Your energy might be in demand every second of the day by a tiny human.
Why, then, does it matter that you make time for writing? Who cares, when you barely have enough energy to get through the day?
It’s a fair question and one all writers/creatives have to answer for themselves. Here’s one way to think about it.
Did you know that the most restful and regenerative activity (besides sleep) is doing something fun? Play gives your brain and body a break.
If you’re a writer, the creative play that energizes you might be your writing. And the more you hold space for that creative energy, the more it grows:
It grows every time you take 30 seconds to write down that amazing idea you just had.
It grows every time you respond to a 5-minute writing prompt or chat with another writer.
It grows every time you hold 15 minutes to record interesting details or try to see your surroundings in a new way.
Growing your creative energy helps you recharge—even if just a little bit—no matter how much physical energy you have available.
So if your energy is limited, it’s even more essential that you make time for moments of creative play.
I mean, making time for writing isn’t going to magically solve your every problem. I’m not saying you can just “mind-over-matter” a chronic illness or real-life responsibilities. But you can learn to carve out small, regenerative bits of time no matter the circumstances.
You can have fun and feel refreshed because of it.
If you think about it this way, writing isn’t just another task on an overwhelming to-do list. Writing becomes your recharge. It becomes a way to increase your creative focus and energy, both for your craft and for the rest of your life.
Connecting to your creative flow is an energetic win, no matter your circumstances.
So who cares if you write? If you’re a writer, I hope you do.