Juggling and not very well

Used to, when I would pick up a Harlequin novel, before I ever dreamed of being published, I imagined the author's life as serene and calm. She would have an organized office. She would write during the day, and at night have supper on the table for her loving family. She would never suffer from writer's block. She was never frantic, at least not in my dreams.

In my life, at least lately, it's not like that at all. I live in the equivalent of an ant bed. 

I think most writers are sort of like this. Writing is hardly ever a full-time job. Most of the writers that I know have day jobs and families and all the chaos that comes with both. They write in fits and snatches. They battle deadlines. They suffer from the writer's block that comes from having a busy mind.

Frequently, my husband will ask why I bother. I guess that's a sign I whine much!

But on the face of it, it makes sense to ask this. If it is so time-consuming, if it is so hard, if I have a full playe already, what's the pay-off?

Simple. My characters won't shut up. They nag at me. They harangue me. They keep me awake at night. I'd go stark raving crazy if I couldn't write.

Yes, it's hard. There are not enough hours in the day or the night. But I love it. I love falling in love with my hero every single time. I love rooting for my heroine and hoping that she will become a stronger woman at the end of the novel  than when she starts out. 

That's why I write. That's why all writers write.