227. 5 Tips on Pursuing Your Writing While Holding Down a 9-to-5 Job

If you've been trying to write a novel with a full-time job, family, and everything else life throws at you, this episode is for you.

Maybe you squeeze writing into nights or weekends. You may start strong, then lose momentum when things don't go as planned. Or perhaps you keep telling yourself you’ll take your writing seriously when you have more time.

In this episode, I’m sharing five practical shifts to prioritize your novel and start making steady progress, even when your time is limited and unpredictable. 

These shifts help you simplify your writing process, reduce decision fatigue, and use the time you already have more effectively, so your draft keeps moving forward instead of wobbling every time life gets busy.

You’ll hear me talk about things like:

[02:40] Why jumping between plotting methods can quietly stall your draft, and what really helps move the needle. 

[04:30] How indecision eats up your writing time before you even start, and what to clarify before you sit down to write.

[06:33] The mistake most busy writers make when setting goals, and how to choose targets that actually fit your real life

[08:44] How to spot hidden pockets of writing time and why you need to protect them before your brain talks you out of it.

[10:50] Why isolation kills momentum, and how the right support system keeps you writing when motivation disappears.

[13:01] BONUS: Two real examples of busy writers who used the same approach, finished their drafts, and signed with agents.

And so much more…

You can finish your novel with a full, busy life. The time is already there. You just need a better plan. Listen in, choose one tip to try this week, and keep your first draft moving forward without waiting for perfect conditions.

🔗 Links mentioned in this episode:

• Sign up for the Writer Breakthrough Bootcamp
• Get on the Notes to Novel Waitlist

⭐ Follow & Review

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to follow the show and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your review will help other writers find this podcast and get the insights they need to finish their books. Thanks for tuning in to The Fiction Writing Made Easy Podcast! See you next week!

Ready to stop overthinking and start writing? Join my LIVE 3-Day Writer Breakthrough Bootcamp, and you'll walk away with a realistic finish date, clarity on your story's deeper purpose, and a logline that proves your idea works. Click here to save your spot for just $27!

Chapters

• 1:17 Why Small Steps Beat Marathons
• 1:35 Welcome And Purpose
• 2:03 The Busy Writer’s Reality
• 3:18 Tip 1: Commit To One Method
• 4:59 Tip 2: Plan Before You Write
• 7:09 Tip 3: Set Realistic Goals
• 9:22 Tip 4: Protect Writing Pockets
• 11:27 Tip 5: Build Support Systems
• 13:40 Case Study: Maddie’s Path
• 15:09 Case Study: Pornika’s Sprint
• 16:30 Core Takeaway: Use Time Strategically
• 17:14 Recap And First Steps
• 18:01 Course Invitation And Resources
• 18:52 Quiz, Show Notes, And Closing

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:37

Progress isn't about having a lot of these marathon type sessions. It's about consistent, manageable steps that compound over time. And if you make little bits of progress here and there, then a year from now you will be amazed at how far those small steps have taken you. Welcome to the Fiction Writing Made Easy Podcast. My name is Savannah Gilbo, and I'm here to help you write a story that works. I want to prove to you that writing a novel doesn't have to be overwhelming. So each week I'll bring you a brand new episode with simple, actionable, and step-by-step strategies that you can implement in your writing right away. So whether you're brand new to writing or more of a seasoned author looking to improve your craft, this podcast is for you. So pick up a pen and let's get started. In today's episode, we're talking about how to finish your novel while working a full-time job. And this episode is for you if you've been wanting to write a novel for years or maybe even decades. But between your full-time job, your commute, your relationships, and everything else that demands your energy, writing always seems to get pushed to someday. Maybe you've even tried to work on your novel after work, but by the time you get home, make dinner, and handle everything else that life throws at you, the last thing you have energy for is staring at a blank page. Or maybe you've had bursts of momentum on weekends, only to lose all of that progress when Monday hits and the cycle starts again. And if you can relate to anything I just said, I want you to know that it is possible to write a novel with a full-time job. Sure, it's not the easiest thing ever, but it is absolutely possible, and I've seen hundreds of writers do it. The key is having a strategy that works with your limited time instead of against it. So in this episode, I'm going to share five tips that will help you build real writing momentum no matter how busy life gets. Then I'm going to talk about two writers who put these ideas into practice and not only finished their novels, but signed with literary agents this year. Alright, now let's get into the episode, starting with tip number one. Tip number one is to commit to one process or method and follow it through all the way to the end of your draft. If you've been collecting craft books, bookmarking blog posts, and researching the quote unquote best plotting or character development methods for months or years, then this first tip is for you. Now, before we get into the actual tip, I understand why you're doing this. Research feels productive, it feels like you're making forward motion, and honestly, it feels safer than actually writing. Because as long as you're still figuring out the quote unquote right approach, you don't have to risk discovering that your story doesn't work or that you're maybe not as good of a writer yet as you had hoped. But what I've noticed after working with hundreds of writers is that hopping from method to method is one of the sneakiest forms of procrastination. And that's because it keeps you busy without moving you forward. Now, the truth is that the most popular methods out there for plotting or character development or scene structure, whatever it is, the truth is they're all going to get you to a finished draft if you just stick with one of them. The magic isn't in finding the perfect method, it's in committing to one method or one process and following it through all the way to the end. And so if everything I've said so far is resonating with you, then what I want you to do is pick the one approach or the one method that feels like it makes the most sense to you, and then give yourself permission to stop looking for something better. You can always try a different method or a different process with your next book, but for this one, I want you to commit to just one. So commit to just one approach or one method and see it through all the way to the end of your draft. And then once you've made that commitment, the next step is knowing exactly what you're working on each time you sit down to write. Which brings us to tip number two. Tip number two is have a plan for what you're writing before you sit down to write. And this one's important because what happens to a lot of busy writers is they carve out, let's say, 20 to 30 precious minutes, they sit down at their desk and then they freeze. All these questions pop up in their mind, like should I work on chapter three? Should I skip ahead to that scene I'm excited about? Should I figure out that one lingering subplot first? Should I reread what I wrote last week? Should I work on my outline more? Right? Question after question pops up. And before they know it, half their writing time is gone because it's been consumed by indecision. And so when you have limited time like most of us do, you can't afford to spend it figuring out what to work on. You need to know that before you sit down to write. And the best way to do this is to have some kind of roadmap for your story. Now, I know some of you listening are panters who break out in hives at the word outline, and I'm not saying you need some kind of 50-page document with every detail mapped out. Your roadmap can be as simple as knowing you're going to write the next scene in whatever sequence of scenes you're working on, or that you're going to flesh out the conversation in the scene you started yesterday. So again, the idea is to not have every single detail figured out about your plot and your characters and your world unless you want to. It's more about just knowing what you're going to work on when you sit down to write. But with that being said, I also do recommend having at least a loose sense of your key scenes, a loose sense of your major plot points, and roughly what happens in each part of your story. And I recommend this because I've just seen too many writers spend months or years wandering around with no direction, only to realize they've written themselves into a corner. So I recommend having some kind of roadmap. And again, a roadmap doesn't need to limit your creativity. It's just there to give you direction. And when you're working with limited time, that kind of direction is everything. All right, so that is tip number two to have some kind of plan when you sit down to write. And with that plan or that roadmap in place, then you can start setting goals that actually fit your life, which brings us to tip number three. And that is to set realistic goals that are aligned with your lifestyle. Now, I know you've heard this advice before to set realistic goals and don't overcommit and to be kind to yourself. But my question for you is are you actually doing it? Because one of the fastest ways to burn out is setting goals that don't match your actual life or the time you have available. So if you're working full time, if you're caring for family, if you're managing a household and trying to maintain some semblance of a social life, then a goal of writing 2,000 words every day is probably going to backfire. What tends to happen is you miss a few days, you feel like a failure, and then you abandon the whole thing. But again, here's where having some kind of roadmap can change everything for you. Because when you see how many scenes you have left to write, you can then work backwards to create a timeline that fits your actual schedule. So not some idealistic version of your life where you have three free hours every evening. No, it needs to be based on your real life with all of its constraints. So maybe that means writing 500 words three times a week, or maybe it's finishing one scene per week, or maybe it's simply opening your document and writing anything five days out of the week. And what I'm kind of getting at here is that progress isn't about having a lot of these marathon type sessions. It's about consistent, manageable steps that compound over time. And if you make little bits of progress here and there, then a year from now you will be amazed at how far those small steps have taken you. Alright, so that is tip number three. I want you to set realistic goals aligned with your lifestyle and the time you actually have. So you can ask yourself things like, how many scenes do I have left? How much time can I realistically give to my writing each week? What kind of deadline feels ambitious yet achievable? And then you can just do the math. Yes, the answer might be slower than you'd like, but a realistic goal that you actually hit will get you to the end faster than an ambitious one that you abandon. Plus, nothing feels worse than missing your goals anyway, right? So better to be realistic than overly ambitious. Now, of course, getting clear on your goals is one thing, but finding the time to actually do it is another. So that brings us to tip number four, to find and protect pockets of writing time. Now, you don't need hours of uninterrupted time to make progress on your novel. Some of the most consistent progress happens in short focus bursts. You might feel like 15 minutes isn't quote unquote real writing time, but it is. Small sessions like that can add up faster than you think, but only if you treat them as sacred creative space and not left over time that you'll get to if you can. So where do you find pockets of time like this? Well, maybe it's 15 minutes before the rest of your house wakes up if you're an early bird, or maybe it's your lunch break with headphones in, or maybe it's the time you have for your lunch break and you put your headphones in and get some work done. Or maybe it's 20 minutes before bed instead of scrolling on your phone. Your weekends count too, so even one focused hour on Saturday morning before the day gets away from you, that can keep your story alive in your mind, and that can keep you kind of touching your story before the day gets away from you, can keep your story alive in your mind. And don't overlook your commute either if you are someone who commutes. If you're spending time in a car or on a train, that's usable time as well. You can use a voice memo app to brainstorm scenes, dictate dialogue, or talk through a plot problem out loud. If you're on a train, of course, you have a little more flexibility. You can actually type out scenes on your laptop or your phone or whatever you're using. So don't overlook your commute. Now, with all of this, the key is identifying these pockets of time in advance and protecting them. Because when you follow tips one, two, and three, or when you have a process when you know what you're writing and you know the specific goal you're going to achieve with the time you have, those short sessions can become surprisingly productive, mostly because you're not wasting precious minutes trying to figure out what to do. You're actually spending that time writing. All right, so that is tip number four. Find and protect pockets of writing time. Now, even with protected writing time and a clear plan, there will still be tough weeks. And that is where the final tip comes in. So tip number five is to build a support system. Now, we all know that writing can feel incredibly isolating, especially when you're trying to squeeze it into the margins of your already full life. And when work is exhausting, when life gets chaotic, when the last thing you want to do is open up your laptop, that's when most writers quietly give up. But having people in your corner makes all the difference. Not because they're gonna write your book for you, but because they'll help you keep going when motivation disappears and when discipline feels impossible. So what does this actually look like in practice? Well, it could mean finding a writing buddy or someone else working on a novel who gets what you're going through. You don't have to be working on the same genre or be at the same stage in your process. Ideally, this is just someone who will check in with you, celebrate your wins, and remind you to keep going when you want to quit. It could also look like joining a writing community, whether that's a local writer's group, an online community like one in Facebook or on Discord, or a paid program like My Notes to Novel course, where you're surrounded by people on the same journey. It doesn't really matter where you tap into the writing community, but there is something powerful about being in a room, even if it's a virtual one, that is full of people who are all working towards the same goal. And really, it's because their momentum and their excitement and hearing about their progress, all of that kind of becomes your momentum and your excitement and you making progress, right? So don't be afraid to look online for a writing community, even if you don't know anybody in that particular community just yet. But you could also do something as simple as just telling a friend or family member about your goal. So make your goal real by saying it out loud and give someone else permission to ask you how your book's coming along. And I know it sounds simple, but sometimes just knowing somebody's going to ask or somebody cares can really give you a reason to keep showing up. And I truly believe that the writers who finish aren't the ones who just somehow magically never struggle. They're the ones who have someone in their corner when they do struggle. All right, so that is tip number five to build a support system. Now I want to talk about what this actually looks like in practice because these tips aren't just theory. I want to tell you about two writers who were in my notes to novel program last year who put these tips into practice and both of them finished their draft and ended up signing with literary agents last year. So the first person I want to tell you about is Maddie, who is a mom of four kids. And if you've ever parented young children, you know it's its own kind of full-time job. But Maddie also is a freelance copywriter and she volunteers full-time at her local youth ministry. So her writing time is extremely limited. But instead of waiting for more time to magically appear, Maddie committed to one process and created a roadmap for her story. That roadmap meant she knew exactly what scene to work on every time she sat down to write. So there was no time wasted wondering what to do next. She also set realistic goals that fit into her actual life and not some fantasy idealistic version of it. And then she protected small pockets of time and leaned on her community for support when things got hard. And Maddie even took a full year off during her pregnancy and the newborn phase. And then when she came back to her writing, she picked right up where she left off because her outline or that roadmap she had was waiting for her. And because of that, she finished her first draft in under six months of actual writing time. And like I mentioned earlier, she queried and signed with her dream literary agent last year. Now, you might recognize Maddie's story. We had her on the podcast back in episode number 225, which I will link to in the show notes if you want to listen to the whole thing. But the next writer I want to tell you about, her name is Pornika, and she works full-time in corporate finance. She's also a self-described perfectionist who kept putting off her novel because she was afraid of getting stuck on the small details. But once she committed to one process and learned to keep moving forward using her roadmap to guide each writing session, she was able to finally stop getting hung up on the little stuff. So Pornica set a realistic goal of writing for just a couple of hours most evenings, protected that time fiercely, and built accountability by connecting with other writers who were on the same journey. And Pornica was able to finish her draft in under 90 days. She also queried agents and signed with an amazing literary agent last year as well. And this is a little spoiler preview because you're actually going to get to hear Pornika's full story on an episode coming out next week. But my point here is that Maddie and Pornica lived two very different lives and had two very different schedules, but they took the same approach to their writing. They committed to one process, they knew what they were going to write every time they sat down at their desk, they set realistic goals, protected their writing time, and got support when they needed it. Alright, so Maddie and Pornica prove what I see again and again, that finishing a novel is not necessarily about having more time. It's about using the time that you do have strategically. Now, let me quickly recap what the five tips are that we covered today. Tip number one was I want you to commit to one process and follow it all the way through to the end of your draft. Tip number two is I want you to know exactly what you're going to work on before you sit down to write. Tip number three is I want you to set realistic goals that are aligned with your lifestyle. So remember we're not trying to be idealistic here. We want to be realistic, not idealistic. Tip number four was to find and protect pockets of writing time here and there. And finally, tip number five was to build a support system. All right, now you don't need to implement all five of these tips at once. My recommendation is to start with the first two. So commit to following one process or method all the way to the end of your draft, and then create some kind of roadmap or outline, whatever that looks like for you. And I suggest these two first because once you do these two, the other tips will kind of fall into place a little bit more naturally. And remember, throughout all of this, throughout the entire writing process, remember to be kind to yourself. Celebrate every scene that you finish, every problem that you solve, and every small step you take forward. If you are someone who's writing a novel while working full time, you are doing something hard. But remember the writers who finish aren't the ones who never struggle. They're the ones who don't give up and who keep coming back. So what I really want you to take away from this episode is that your busy life isn't a barrier to finishing your novel. It just means you need a clear path forward and it needs to be one that works with your schedule instead of against it. Now, if you want my help putting all five of these tips into practice, and if you're ready to stop putting your novel aside for someday when life feels less busy, and if you want to start making real progress, my notes to novel course will give you the step-by-step process to brainstorm, outline, and draft your novel even with limited time. It's the same course that Maddie, Pornika, and hundreds of other writers have been through, and it will help you make the most of those precious pockets of time to actually move you towards the end of your draft. Enrollment opens very soon, so go to Savannah Gilbo.com forward slash waitlist to put your name on the wait list and you'll be the first to know when doors open. So one more time, that's Savannah Gilbo.com forward slash waitlist to get on the notes to novel wait list and be the first to know when enrollment opens. Alright, so that's it for this episode of the Fiction Writing Made Easy Podcast. Head over to Savannah Gilbo.com forward slash podcast for the complete show notes, including the resources I mentioned today, as well as bonus materials to help you implement what you've learned. And if you're ready to get more personalized guidance for your specific writing stage, whether you're just starting out, stuck somewhere in the middle of a draft, drowning in revisions, or getting ready to publish, take my free 30-second quiz at savannaGilbo.com forward slash quiz. You'll get a customized podcast playlist that'll meet you right where you're at and help you get to your next big milestone. Last but not least, make sure to follow this podcast in your podcast player of choice because I'll be back next week with another episode full of actionable tips, tools, and strategies to help you become a better writer. Until then, happy writing.