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Thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh for again organizing Insecure Writers’ Support Group along with his wonderful co-hosts Tina Downey, Elsie, Elizabeth Seckman, and Julie Flanders! Go here to see the other participants.

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Insecure Writer's Support Group

Insecure Writers!

This month, I’m all tuckered out, been sick and missed a lot of writing. That’s not all of it. I’m co-hosting the A to Z Challenge, (the one blog event worth signing up for, imho) and participating in it via two blogs. I have to pre-schedule everything– that’s 52 posts for two blogs, and I’m not done with even one of them yet– though I hope to change that today.

One of them is going to be all done with 26 shiny posts tonight, if it kills me, waiting to go out into the world in April. I had hoped to avoid doing this work in March, but life, health, and everything else has caught up with me.

I’m trying to get the second draft of my WIP finished as well, and feel as if it is suffering due to my involvement in my blogs! Add to that my freelance writing commitments, and we’re talking serious time-crunch here.

Sometimes I wonder whether I blog too much for my own good, but at others, I realize it is my support system as well, a place online I can escape to and meet friends when my fiction is driving me up the wall. Which, let’s face it, is most days!  I have cut back on blogging this month, one post a week per blog in order to fit everything else in, but I shan’t give up on blogging entirely. Have you ever felt this way– that your blog is running away with you and there’s no time to write?

On a good note for my writing, however, I had a flashfiction piece published in an international feminist journal , When Women Waken, so that was a good feeling. My WIP has feminist overtones, so I think my writing is able to reach out, which gives me a measure of confidence.

Has Your Blog ever eaten into your Writing?

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If you’re a writer clipping away at #amwriting each day, join the Insecure Writers’ Support Group!

Damyanti Biswas

Damyanti Biswas is the author of You Beneath Your Skin and numerous short stories that have been published in magazines and anthologies in the US, the UK, and Asia. She has been shortlisted for Best Small Fictions and Bath Novel Awards and is co-editor of the Forge Literary Magazine. Her literary crime thriller series, the Blue Mumbai, is represented by Lucienne Diver from The Knight Agency. Both The Blue Bar and The Blue Monsoon were published in 2023.

I appreciate comments, and I always visit back. If you're having trouble commenting, let me know via the contact form, or tweet me up @damyantig !

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79 Comments

  • Reblogged this on Ancien Hippie.

  • Hi – Yes! Writing while blogging and using other social media platforms is quite challenging. I’m still trying to learn that fine balance as a relatively new blogger. It really requires planning and organization, but I think once you’ve achieved a certain balance, it can work out.

  • I find that my writing gets in the way of my writing. I am such a perfectionist that even the smallest piece is treated with the meticulousness of a novel that will be submitted for publication. I have to edit it again, and again, and again. Months later I find myself fighting urges to tweak things. It should not take a whole day (or more) to do one blog post, and yet for me it does. I have so much to say, but usually don’t have the time it would take. That’s because another issue is balance- I have none. I am either writing all the time and don’t want to do anything else and my house is a shambles and I ignore my husband, or I am not writing at all because I know I don’t have the time it would take to do it right. I feel that my stories deserve no less than to be told to the best of my ability. That internal pressure makes me afraid of failing them so sometimes I don’t even try. Even this comment took me way too long and was edited way too many times…

  • Tom says:

    Yes, indeed it does, even though I’ve started to manage my writing life a little more in recent times. I have a website to feature my writing and art, so I am aware of spending too much time in any one area. My blog is all about writing, and included in that is the support of other writers.
    I started late in life compared to some, but I’ve recognised some of the pitfalls, so when I read a blog, or a piece of writing, I tend to write a ‘review’ rather than a ‘critique’. In order to avoid damaging the writer’s reputation, if I see anything wrong, I write privately. For me, it’s this dual-review idea that takes up some of my time, but most writers seem to appreciate it.
    My latest tactic is to give myself a two day ‘window’ to try to catch up with the blogs I follow. I only started following yours recently, but couldn’t help but be impressed by how much effort you put in. My way of dealing with the blog/writing dilemma is therefore a weekly ‘patrol’ of blogs that I want to be in touch with.
    As for you my friend – remember to take some time out to recharge your batteries; we need you to be in good health!

  • Short answer: yes. It is really hard to find the time to blog regularly and keep up with ‘proper’ writing. I realise many may object to me making that distinction; but for me, being a fiction writer – or trying to be one – blogging is always going to be a secondary, supporting activity. That’s not to say I don’t see its value, and I have really gotten into it more since I started in earnest just a few months ago. (I set up my WordPress site last September but didn’t start regularly updating it until November.) And I’ve come across some really interesting blogs during that time – thought-provoking, useful, motivating and often funny.

    I’ve now settled down into a routine of blogging about twice a week, with about 50-75% of the posts being stories or samples of my writing, and the others being random stuff mostly about writing. I’m still feeling my way though, and learning all the time from established blogs like this. So thanks for the time you put in to this – I for one certainly appreciate it.

  • OH yes I hear you – and I feel your pain!

  • D.G.Kaye says:

    Love this and can identify. Yes, I think my blogging can get in the way but sometimes I am compelled to go there and write and mingle with my blogger friends in comments. I think as writers we need this outlet. I am also in 2nd revisions and try to divide my time accordingly.

    • geogee says:

      D.G. I too mingle with commentators to my various posts on my various blogs. You are 100% correct about it being an outlet. It also humanizes the post when readers get to engage with the author I feel. It’s parallel with being called by your name when you shop at your favorite brick and mortar business. Readers know the writer is paying attention to them and they patronize our works repeatedly. They’ll understand when we have larger projects to attend to and support them. They’ll understand a slow down or blog postings or comment response, if they are aware bigger rewards are coming from us.

  • emaginette says:

    OH yeah, I’ve started limiting how much time I send on line or I’d be doing that instead of writing. 🙂

  • perlesink says:

    I’ve been remiss. My writing and painting interfered with blogging and blog courtesies and I don’t think I repaid your kind visit in December. I’m looking forward to A-Z (signed up a few days ago). I wrote a lot of poetry last time I signed up and those poems are becoming a book – think it was 2012 – missed the 2013 deadline.
    I’ve retired from my day job, and I’m determined to make a schedule of sorts so I can address it all.
    Perle Champion at Perle’s Ink, freelance words & art

  • Adele says:

    Sometimes I feel as if there is only so much energy in me to write per day, and if I blog it means less time for other projects. Maybe this is true, but I find blogging is the writing that reminds me most why I like to write. It’s helps me slog through all my WIP crap with a bit of humour and grace.

  • chuu2venge says:

    Reblogged this on refkanbluedesert.

  • Arlee Bird says:

    Yes, ridiculously so.

    Lee
    An A to Z Co-Host
    Tossing It Out

  • Pete Buckley says:

    I’ve been away from blogging a couple of weeks myself but that’s been down just as much to the Sochi Olympics followed by one of the kids going down with chickenpox! Working on a second novel means I have less time to blog but I was never all that prolific anyway – certainly in my number of posts per month.

  • One of my favorite blog finds of 2013 said in a post not so long ago something along the lines of, “I need to decide if I’m a writer who blogs or a blogger who writes.” BAM! Knocked me right on the noggin. Blogging, like you say, is a lifeline, especially for us writers who spend so much time, by necessity or preference, alone. But, see, I’ve been guilty of using blogging as the ultimate tool for procrastination. We can’t have that 😉

    You’re a hero, D. Not for taking on so much, but for doing it, all of it, so well. No, don’t argue with me. You’re MY hero, and that’s that.
    Guilie @ Quiet Laughter

  • jimrada says:

    Sometimes I will delay writing my book projects and say it’s because I need to blog, but I think it is more often an excuse because I’ve hit a hart point in my book. At least for me, I think doing both is more a matter of better time management on my part.

  • That was such a powerful flash fic piece Damyanti!
    I’m not certain I could ever stop blogging. I enjoy the community spirit too much!
    Writer In Transit

  • egehlin says:

    I’ve set a goal of two posts a week. Doesn’t matter if the posts are long or short–just two per week. That’s eight posts per month and leaves plenty of time for my projects…unless the car acts up and I have to work overtime at my 9 to 5 to pay for repairs.

    That’s when I have to find a way to add a few more hours to a 24 hour day.

  • Feel the same way. Great post!

  • divyasarma says:

    Damyanti, thank you for drawing me into your net. I read your post on making blogging friends. Like you, I too have been a lurker for a long time. Only recently, I made a resolution to myself to reach out and make friends online. The A to Z blogging challenge looks interesting, and it is something creative and challenging to look forward to. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

  • WriterlySam says:

    CONGRATS on your story!! I completely understand your plight. I’ve had to cut back on numerous fun “diversions”, even turn down some freelance work, to dedicate more time to my WIP. I’ll still be here for support, but won’t be posting much until April. I’m here for ya, girl–take care of yourself first, the rest can wait. xoxo
    WriterlySam Join the A to Z Theme Reveal Party!

  • worland102688 says:

    I find that even though I only do one entry a week it does mess with my writing.. I’ve been thinking though, since I do short fiction in parts I could write a few posts at a time and have them publish themselves each week. Thus giving me more time to work on my novel. I’m hoping it works out 🙂

  • andfreed says:

    I too sometimes feel pressure to keep up with my blog and don’t always get all of the other writing done that I plan to. I still blogging is a good thing in my experience.

  • To answer your question, my answer is “Not really.” These days, I WISH I’m blogging more, though compared to the past, this IS more already, but sometimes I wish I have time to post at least twice a week. I do have stuff either in store already or waiting to be written but I can’t seem to have enough time to do any kind of writing that is not related to work. My fiction has been suffering most of all. I don’t want to beat myself up with it, though. .

  • Rajlakshmi says:

    I was wondering about the same thing… Even I am taking part with 2blogs and it is eating all my time… Plus networking and making new blogger connection… It’s fun but that’s all I do … congratulations on your story. Take care. 🙂

  • djgarcia94 says:

    I have always wanted to be a writer, and realized for sure that it was my calling when I took a creative writing class. Originally I my intention was to build an audience for my work, which would come very useful if and when I actually publish anything. Over time it became more about blogging than anything else. During the Summer I was spending a lot of time fine tuning my short stories but then I got out of that habit. For a while I felt like I wasn’t doing my part to become a good writer, but I have recently realized that the Daily Prompt is the best way to practice writing around. NowI view myself as much of a blogger as a writer, and I am happy with that.

  • Yes, yes and yes! But it is all different pieces of the writing world and I miss my blogging friends when I’m not on the web. Isn’t it strange?

  • bamauthor says:

    Writing my blog does not take nearly as much time as gathering and reading the books that I review for it. Still, I love to read and share that love of good books with others so that makes it worthwhile for me.

  • I haven’t ever felt like blogging ate into my writing. Sometimes, I lose my blogging passion and have to go find it again.

  • Yes, blogging gets in the way of my other writing projects. However, I know a professional author can concentrate on more than one project at a time. Also, my blog is the best way to build a fan base for when my book comes out.
    My biggest problem is coming up with content that people will want to read for my blog. Sometimes I feel like I’m just posting words to check it off my list of things to do.

  • AJ says:

    My blog totally suffers when I’m really heavy into writing, or life, or my ‘real job’ or anything else. I’m getting better about pre-scheduling though! Way to go getting all your A-Z posts done in one day! That’s super impressive. (shh.. I still don’t have a theme…)

  • Totally happening to me at the moment. I have such little time to write (between work and kids) and so I have to make a choice of what I will work on in the evenings. The blogging often wins because it is easier and more social. It is also nice to quickly finish something instead of slogging along in the middle somewhere.

  • Jemima Pett says:

    Blogging ready for the #atozchallenge, final editing of my new book Bravo Victor, minioning for my slave driver of a co-host, writing weekly flash fiction and reading books to review on my blog… writing the new book has to take a back seat this month!

    Jemima
    Join the A to Z Challenge Theme Reveal Blogfest – sign up now!

  • Sorry about the not-feeling well part. I worry about neglecting my writing at times, but somehow I get back to it even after taking time off to blog or do other things. It pulls me back. The creative process has that power, I guess. Or maybe it’s just that I miss it if I stay away too long. I hope things work out for you. Sometimes a deep breath and a moment of reflection help. 🙂

  • Jennifer Marshburn says:

    I have found that, lately, I am concentrating much more on blogging than my WIP, but I’m still feeling accomplished and proud everyday so I can’t complain that much. Both of my WsIP are at a bit of a standstill right now, so most of my work on them is just note-taking and formulating anyway until I can get some research under my belt. Have to say, I’m feeling pretty confident, and happily writing everyday!

  • Congrats on having your piece published! I try to blog regularly but most times I only get to do it once or twice a month.

  • Blogging does seem to eat into my writing time. It’s not so much the writing part as the posting and promoting of the posts so that somebody will read them. I post once a week each on three different blogs. Sometimes the blog posts seem like a good warmup for my other writing, and I think they help bring attention to my books and help stabilize my platform. But I also worry that I’m wasting good ideas that I could sell if I could put more time into them. It’s tricky finding a balance.

  • Dalo 2013 says:

    A very good question, and I can say at times it has replaced my writing… I think it is a good thing, as like a pendulum it will swing in the opposite direction. As writing is a hobby/passion and I do not make money from it, the situation suits me well. And if I was honest, I’d say blogging has allowed me to rationalize my laziness/fear of focusing fully on writing 🙂

  • Yeah, I think my blog cuts into my writing time. I try to post three times a week, and sometimes that’s quite a chore. I love blogging, but right now it is rather discouraging.

  • shoreacres says:

    Well, you know my thoughts about this, but I might as well repeat them, to remind myself and perhaps to give someone else a vision.

    There is no division between my blogging and my writing. I use a blog platform for my writing, and every word that goes onto that page is as seriously considered as if I were submitting a manuscript to Random House or any other press.

    I do tweet new posts to a few followers on Twitter, but otherwise? No Facebook, no texting, no Tumblr, no Pinterest, no LinkedIn. I prefer to grow organically, and over the past year, the number of people following strictly by RSS or email has grown ten-fold.

    Not only that, I just completed my first two-part post, which totaled out at nearly 4,000 words. People read, and people commented – a lot of people. So much for “you have to keep it short.”

    Let me put it this way: there’s a lot of dithering and a lot of time wasted among us all. There’s only one way to learn to write, and that’s to write. Publication is the acid test. That’s why I hit that “publish” button once a week, and have for five years. When the day comes that I decide a book may be in order, I’ll be able to demonstrate my ability to attract and hold an audience. That’s worth a good bit.

  • I find my fiction writing and my blogging compatible. I try voices out in my blogs, test ideas, gain courage in my convictions. I have a few freelance gigs that require more thought and mental strength than I have at times, but the rest is almost fun.

    Congrats on your published story! I’m going over to check it out.

  • agmoye says:

    To keep myself on track, I plan out my day by reading email after breakfast, writing blogs after that, I have two of them I use almost daily and another five or six I used once in a while, they are usually about one of my books. The main two are those I concentrate on. In the afternoon, I usually work on one of my books. Right now, I have three I am working on, picking one each day depending on my mood and the book scenes rolling around in my head, I chose which one to work on.The evening and nighttime, I write with breaks to see what is going on in various threads I follow and various communities I am in. @Agmoye

  • douglasce says:

    I often feel like the exact opposite is true. The need to blog and tweet and Facebook and MySpace and Friendster or whatever in order to make myself visible and connected is a constant drain when I’d really rather just write fiction. So I write fiction and hardly ever blog! Ha!

    Seriously though, I take any opportunity I can to put off blogging, which is a problem because these days it’s a necessary component of any creative person’s life. It seems that way, anyway.

  • Sometimes i like blogging more than working on my novels, especially when it comes to the editing stage or sending it out or marketing it.
    I am realizing that the joy I get from blogging (researching my topic, writing about it, sharing it with other bloggers, getting feedback and just having a blogging community to read) is bound to influence my writing. I try not to worry too much about whether my blogging is cutting into my writing time.
    I tend to believe that all will sort itself out in the end:)

  • ibtisam says:

    I wish I could write more often,,once a week would be perfect really..

  • lindalh says:

    Thank you for sharing your feelings on this. My mind has been obsessed with I need to write, no, I need to be out in the world, no, I need to write. There is not enough time, it takes me forever to get my thoughts arranged into understandable sentences so I burn dinner while I’m thinking. Blogging should be a quicker, easier way to throw those ideas down and revisit later if I want to expand on those thoughts. Because most of my “face-to-face” friends do not follow my blogs, I do at least save time thinking up conversation……I just repeat my blog words into conversation. You gotta love it!

  • sjledge2 says:

    That’s a good question. I do find I spend a lot more time creating posts for my blog then I do writing.

  • I have my own posts ready, but I still need to do several for the A to Z Blog and the IWSG site for the Challenge.
    Does blogging eat into writing time? Yes. But if I wasn’t blogging, i wouldn’t have a reason to write.

  • Luanne says:

    Good question. Yes. Like you, I find blogging a benefit and a detriment to my writing. I would like a double day each day. One sleep period, but the day twice as long :).

  • randee says:

    My blog can definitely eat into the QUALITY of my writing.

  • Fraukje says:

    I feel like in my life everything is eating into everything. Sometimes I go nuts. I need time!!

  • Blogging for me is partly a way to socialise. It’s a way to keep family and friends, former colleagues, former neighbours where I lived before, even friends I made online, updated on what I’m up to.

    I know they check it often, because when I don’t blog for a period of time, the emails and phone calls start asking what’s wrong.

    Blogging is also a way for me to market my freelance writing services. That’s how I make a living and almost 98% of my work comes from word of mouth and by the time these people talk to me, they know whether they like me or not and I don’t have to sell myself and to sell my books.

    But yes, it does eat up a large chunk of my time. However, I don’t think I would be the writer I am if i didn’t do it. I would be lonelier (no other writers I know where I live) and I don’t think I would be too productive under those circumstances anyway. So even if I have to write a post late at night or something, most times I’m pretty convinced it’s time well spent.

    re A-Z challenge, I’ve scheduled up to X for my gardening blog and I’m considering whether to enter my children’s stories blog or not ( a children’s story a day for April would allow me to draft stories and blog at the same time. The question is, can I sustain writing 26 children’s stories in that time? It’s fun trying/drafting them now.. so we’ll see.)

    • Hi. You said, “I know they check it often, because when I don’t blog for a period of time, the emails and phone calls start asking what’s wrong.” You’re so lucky! And most probably a very good writer that’s why they check it often 🙂 I don’t think anyone of even my actual friends check mine out that often, if they do at all. Well, except one, and that’s because he blogs here, too (though he hasn’t been lately). I think the “problem” is friends like the idea that I blog, but they just don’;t have the time to read or, well, most people hate reading nowadays. Pity.

  • Um, not just yeah but HELL yeah! I used to have several blogs – our personal travel blog, our dog’s blog written from her point of view, our Route 66 motorcycle trip blog, our future log cabin blog, a general rambling blog for those things that didn’t fit elsewhere and my writing blog. Oh, and then I added our moving to Ecuador blog!

    Now I have three – personal blog with all the miscellaneous ones merged in (and mostly posted in when we visit the family in the US or when I publish a book), our Ecuador blog and my writing blog.

    Still too much but I’m slowly getting it under control. Due to too much real life, I haven’t done any fiction writing for way too long, since my last novel was published in September. A to Z is getting my writing legs back under me, prepping me to finish two short stories (one for an anthology for a fellow author fighting cancer) and moving on to my romance trilogy (hoping to pop one a month out, then edit them all) and finally the next two books in my Klondike mystery series. Going to be a busy year!

  • longandluxe says:

    Mmmm wonderful post and question! I know blogging is in the way of my writing when I start feeling extreme, as though I MUST post and it MUST be amazing! Then I know it’s time to breathe and reboot. I also find it helpful to remember why I blog – to bring more light and love into the world. So if I’m feeling uninspired or anxious, I give myself some time to get back to my original goals. Thanks for the awesome topic! 🙂

  • Yes! I solved it by cutting down on the number of blogs I had up and running. No more food blog. No more cake blog. No more writer’s blog about physical descriptions. Even my poor family blog that I created to share pics with my mom has seen little to no activity. But, by choosing the blog that helps me the most with my writing, I keep in touch with this wonderful and supportive community while getting more time to write.

    And I’ve become a horrible lurker! Rarely commenting, but reading all the same. *sigh*

    Good luck getting all your posts scheduled. I’m working on mine with my kids since they helped me pick my topic. It’s slowing me down though and I’m only through the letter D! Eeek!

  • I put up one blog a day. The little I write on my blog, I probably would not write if I didn’t do the blog, but choosing and then preparing my photos for the blog every evening is quite time consuming.

  • doreenb8 says:

    I am so happy I am not the only one that wonders if my blog takes away from my writing. It probably does but it also makes me a better writer and the relationships that have been formed are priceless to me.
    I have not started my posts for the challenge yet. I am going to change that this weekend. Good luck with finishing yours tonight!!

  • Diane Burton says:

    Blogging uses a different part of my mind than writing a story. Although I love the connection with readers, yes, it does cut into my story writing time. Balance. That’s what it’s all about.

  • Tienny says:

    My tasks have eaten my blogging time

    >

  • Peter Nena says:

    I do not blog too much; I have a job that consumes nine hours of my life everyday. I get home tired and after other things and dinner, I have only two hours to spare. I’m writing the second draft of a novel that I should finish very soon. I also have three unfinished manuscripts glaring at me, even hating and cursing me for neglecting them. Once, I thought that if a story wasn’t moving as fast as I wished it–if, for instance, I was stuck at a chapter for more than a couple of days–I could abandon it for sometime and immediately begin another. It’s how I ended up with the three, or four, if you count the second draft. I scarcely have time to write for my blog, although I do the draft on weekends. If I have a story for a blog, I will allot it fours of every weekend until it is done, while the rest of the time will be for the draft. Writing keeps me busy at home, otherwise I may go mad from contemplating the world, and from cogitating upon (im)possibilities.

  • Shah Wharton says:

    I hear this. I try to pull back now and again but really miss the community of writers. Good luck figuring out a balance.

    shahwharton.com

  • Personally, I couldn’t do a 26 successive day a-z or a 30 day challenge without eating into my fiction writing time.

    I tend to focus on discussing what I’m writing, technical matters, and thoughts about other (high profile) people’s fiction when I blog.

    I think that sorting and structuring ideas for a blog should be a form of practice for the writing that I really want to do.

  • Sam says:

    I’ve been blogging five days a week and I think it’s starting to seriously cut into my creative writing time. I’ve done embarrassingly little on my WIPs since NaNoWriMo, which is about when I started blogging. I’m trying to balance building a platform and support network and having time to do the writing I’m blogging about. I’m still not sure where to stand.

  • Pierre Lagacé says:

    I am not a writer, so my many blogs don’t suffer at all. The problem is keeping up with the stories that pop up all the time.

  • stusharp says:

    I do get worried about it, because it feels like procrastination, and I seem to go online whenever I hit a difficult bit in what I’m writing. As I am now, in fact.

  • juliusmsanz says:

    I’ve found out that it has been eating a bit, time to correct that.

  • I’m wondering the same thing. Blogging and the social aspects take up a chunk of time. I have other writing projects, which are being neglected. And reading to do… your post is another prompt for me to look at my priorities and time-management. Sue

  • I feel the same way at times but my blog allows me to express myself and exercise the writing muscle. My novel will unfold in its proper time. Good luck with all of your posts.

  • Dan Antion says:

    Since I don’t really do much other writing, blogging doesn’t eat into writing time. That said, I do have a day job and there is only so much time and, as you say, there’s life. I had a period when I was doing systems development as a pass time, and sometimes it would invade my work/primary thought process. I like to think I was able to balance those – i did get my work done, but the line was not nearly as clear. I always took comfort in the fact that every bit of programming I did made me a better programmer (at least I hoped so). If every bit of writing makes you a better writer, then it’s not stealing time.

  • Harliqueen says:

    I have a set posting routine, but even then sometimes it’s hard trying to write posts and get on with writing my novellas. But you’re right, blogging is a such a useful tool for me and I have found a community around it, so it is worth in the end 😀

    • Damyanti says:

      I’ve been blogging for 6 years, and it is often a struggle, but it is worthwhile simply for the blogging friends I make :). Thanks for stopping by!

  • Thanks for Following me please Checkout my new Talk Show Blog “STR8UP”.

  • As to blogging too much, I decided to set a goal of no more than one (hopefully good)blog a week. That seems to be around the right number for me, but for others it might be less or more. The trick is finding balance. My problem is finding time to work on a novel and play while also teaching which includes much writing. I also find it more frustrating than helpful in the writers’ groups I have attended, more about bragging rights than helpful. Perhaps it would be best for a focus on a specific aspect of writing would help (like the topic you have posted here).