Should Writers Have Kids?
There’s no question about it: bringing up children is hard work. It takes love, devotion and lots and lots of time. As a writer, it can put a serious dent in the number of daily hours you have in which to write, and reduce your lifetime output from a hundred books to ten – especially if you also need a full-time day job in order to support your family.
But listen to this:
Before I became a father, I didn’t really understand what people meant when they talked of unconditional love. Now I know. Being a father’s changed everything. It’s made me vulnerable again. It’s given me moments of true happiness, fear, helplessness, and pride. It’s put me in touch with my emotions and given me new perspectives and empathy, and insights into my own childhood. And while it means I have to sacrifice sleep in order to find the time to write, it’s unquestionably been worth it.
Yes, parenting takes a lot of time and energy – but my life’s so much richer for it. And so is my writing.
Hi Gareth
As a new father, I completely agree. Even though it’s early days, being a father for the first time has helped me focus my writing (I guess I have less time now to spend on frivolous things!). Sure, the less time I have, the less time I have to do my writing, but I’m lucky to be able to prioritise my craft above most other things (as it’s one of the three streams of income coming into the household). You just learn to sacrifice other parts of your life to concentrate those that are more important, i.e. family and the writing.
Well, that’s the plan, anyway! We’ll see if it stays that way over the next twelve months…
Thanks Matt. 90% of my overall writing output has been written since becoming a father. I think you’re right about the way it makes you focus your time. When I had all the time in the world, I never got around to writing much. When writing time is precious, you make the most of it.