Authors' Helpline discussion

One of the biggest hurdles prospective writers face is that they always repeat the mantra ‘One day, I am going to write a book.’
Of course, for most people, that day never comes. The reason is that life gets in the way, and there is always something to do. So today’s lesson in writing is a very simple one.

To start writing your first novel, set a time of the day that you are going to spend writing. Be it one hour, or two or three depending on the amount of free time you have, set aside that time.
Explain to your family what it is that you are going to do, make them understand that they are not allowed to bother you during that time. If you are married, get your spouse to look after the children during that time, give your spouse your cell-phone, and lock yourself in your hidey-hole with a cup of coffee, or even the whole coffee making machine.
And that brings me to my next point. Find a place to write.
If you are lucky, you might have a study where you can hide away in, otherwise a laptop on top of your bed might have to do. It doesn’t really matter, because once you start writing, the world around you will fall away, the four walls will disappear and you will be in fantasy land, a land of your own creation. For the amount of time you have set aside, you will be away from home, so make sure that the family understands that.

Thanks for this advice, I really need to do this. I am a busy person with school and two hour basketball practices every day but I need to give SOME time (maybe even twenty minutes) to my writing. On she weekends I can do much more so I should do like one or two hours then.