Are you dusting off your 2020 writing goals and wondering how to find time to write now and in the year ahead? Between work, being there for others, and taking care of yourself, writing can get pushed to the bottom of the list. But don’t give up on your writing goals! Doing three things can help you find time to write: connect, calendar, and commit.

I probably wouldn’t have written this blog post if I hadn’t done those three things. Like you, I’ve had a challenging year, which has been reflected in minimal writing on this blog. Other things were (or seemed) more pressing. I kept putting it off.

I needed accountability.

I needed company.

So I emailed some friends who I thought might have writing projects they wanted to work on and asked if they’d like to “Write with Company.” I sent Zoom invites for two one-hour blocks and told them I’d be on Zoom writing if they wanted to join me.

During the first block, a friend in California and a friend in Tennessee joined. During the second block, a friend from Ireland joined too. We worked on books, short stories, grant proposals, and in my case, this blog post. One woman said it was the most productive she’d been all year.

It took connecting with other people who wanted to find time to write, calendaring in that time, and committing to show up to make time to write. I’ve invited friends to join me again to write for two one-hour blocks this week.

If you want to find time to write, ask friends, family, or acquaintances to write with you for an hour. Showing up consistently and reaching out for support will help you reach your writing goals.

I’m thinking about organizing an “official” Writing with Community group in 2021. If you’re interested in joining, hit reply (if you’re a subscriber), or send me a message.

Photo by John Duncan on Unsplash