by Sarah Varland, @SarahVarland

Raising young children (mine are 5 and 7) is, as most parents will tell you, a feat in and of itself but to do that AND write is something that puzzles most of the world. People ask me how I write when I have kids more than they ask me almost any other question about writing and I understand why.

Writing with kids is hard.

When it comes to writing with small kids who are at home with you during the day, I’ve seen a lot of tactics, and by all means if one of these works for you, stop reading and just go with it. But if like me, these three options eventually fail you…keep reading, I have another theory.

1. Write late at night. This works great if you’re a night owl and can get your creative juices flowing even after a full day of laundry folding, working your second job, homeschooling, chasing toddlers, or whatever else you have going on.
2. Write in tiny snippets. I have an author friend who can write in 15-minute increments. This is impressive to me in a way I can’t explain because just the thought of trying to do that makes me break out into hives.
3. Write while kids watch TV. This is an option but not hugely sustainable. I view this more as a treat option (for me and my kids!) when I need to have them occupied while I get something written. It’s not something I want to do daily.

This is the first year I’ve found another option. This is the year I found my magic couch.

The magic couch isn’t magic—it’s the couch where parents can sit at the art school where my boys take art lessons once a week and I realized this year that it’s the ideal place for me to be creative and get a lot written. I’ve started to view the hour I get on that couch as my BEST writing time. I KNOW I’m going to get a lot written on that couch.

Almost every art class, it has worked. But guess what? You and I both know that couch isn’t magic.

I think anything resembling magic comes from the discipline I’m using when I tell myself that no matter how fun Facebook seems, or how good the book I’m reading is, THIS HOUR is the time I’m going to make the most of my opportunity to write.

It’s the freedom to create that comes with discipline—and it’s not a lot of discipline. It’s one hour a week that I’m saying is non-negotiable, unlike the other writing time where I have to make one of the above options work for me.

I know how hard it is to find time. You may feel like you don’t have an hour. But if your kids aren’t in some kind of lessons where you can find your own literally couch (or bleachers, etc), maybe you have an hour when they’re taking a nap, or an hour when they’re in the bathtub (assuming they are old enough not to need constant supervision, obviously). Maybe your hour is while they do schoolwork. Or while they eat lunch.

I think the trick to writing with kids is, no matter how much you try to work writing into your day, it’s hard to be consistent every day the way someone with older kids can be. But if you can find your “magic couch moment”, one hour during the week that you KNOW is set aside to write and that you can make yourself be inspired during, you’ll be surprised at how much that tiny change can carry you through the week.

Sarah Varland lives near the mountains in Alaska with her husband John, their two boys, and their dogs. Her passion for books comes from her mom, her love for suspense comes from her dad who has spent a career in law enforcement. Her love for romance comes from the relationship she has with her husband and from watching too many chick flicks. When she’s not writing, she’s often found reading, baking, kayaking or hiking.