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jeharterauthor

A Day in the Life of an Author

Hi, reader friends! Thanks for being here.


I always used to wonder as a kid what being a writer would be like. Hell, the thought even crossed my mind a year ago when I first stared writing "The Butcher and the Bard." I had no expectations, but well--here I am! 1 finish book, 1 in the editing stages, and a million more in my head waiting to be fleshed out onto the page.


So what is the daily life of an author?


I can't speak for all authors, obviously--I am still a newbie in this world, BUT I do have a schedule for myself. I am fortunate in that my other jobs involve working from home a lot, and very minimal in-person time. This allows me to spend most of my days working on the thing I truly love--my characters, my worlds, and my books!


So here is an example of my daily life:

7am-8am: Wake up. I have 2 cats who refuse to let me sleep past a certain hour. I usually do a lot of email/social media checking while lying in bed. I then eventually make some coffee and put on the news.


8am-9am: More email checking. I also like to post to my 3 social media accounts (IG, TT, Clapper) at this time. I drink my coffee, watch the news, and I also enjoy querying at this time--I find my brain is wide awake by now. I am a morning person, and I think my best work is always done before 2pm.


9am-10:30am: Morning writing stint. I'm either actively drafting, editing, or planning/organizing. These are my golden hours--the most productive time of the day for me. I get a lot done.


10:30-12pm: I take a break around now to do some chores, run errands, stretch, or switch to my other jobs. Sometimes, if I'm really on a roll, I'll jump right back into my work. I also like to read 50 pages at this time from my current read.


12pm: I literally can't go past 12pm without eating lunch. My body is trained at this point.


1pm-3pm: More writing/editing/planning. Short breaks for stretching, phone calls, emails. Again, these are productive hours for me. Or I sometimes go for a walk to the library at this time of day. If it's a good day, I'll do a 2nd social media post at this time.


3-5pm: My brain decides to quit. I usually like to read another 50 pages now to clear my mind of my own work. If the book is really good, I'll read way more. Sometimes, I even switch to another book because I like to read 2 books simultaneously.


5-9pm: I make dinner, watch a movie or TV show, continue reading if the book is really good. I also do a 2nd (or 3rd) social media post at this time.


9pm: I go to bed early. I am an old woman. I like to sleep. Again, if I'm reading a great book, I will push this to 10:30pm, but my eyes start to go crossed at a certain point.


That's it! Not super glamorous, but certainly productive! This kind of schedule is why I was able to write Book 2 in the Dark Magic Series in 3 months.

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