Every year, thousands of people say they could write a book tomorrow if they wanted. So why don’t they? Because most will tell you that they simply don’t have the time. They’ve got a job to hold down, kids to run around after, social engagements, all sorts of excuses yet they still have time to spend hours on Facebook every day.

If you really want to write then write. Very few writers have all the time they want on their hands to write; even the most famous are running around doing other things – like holding down another job and looking after their kids. They still find the time.

And the one thing writing needs is time. Nobody can wake up one morning and say that today is the day they are going to write a best-selling novel, especially if they have never written a thing in their lives. Writing takes practice – a lot of it – and most of the biggest authors of today churned out several poor attempts at a first novel, not to mention a ton of short stories too before their first big hit.

Don’t be that writer who sits down with all good intentions and then leaves a half-finished manuscript or never even gets started because something else took their attention. Don’t be that writer who thinks the first rejection is the shape of things to come and gives up straight away. Be that writer who takes criticism and rejection in their stride, makes the time to perfect things and wins the day.

How? By setting your writing goals and sticking to them.

Tidy Your Life

And make a bit of space so you can write. Think about things that you can get someone else to do, things you do that you can give up or things that you can change to make time.

Place limits on how long you spend on social media, on texting your mates, watching TV and other mindless time drains;

Catch the train or a bus to work rather than taking the car and do some writing on the journey;

Have your groceries delivered to the door;

Batch cook so you have a bunch of ready meals for the week ahead;

Teach your kids (and partner!) how to do the laundry, help with housework and other tasks appropriate to their age;

Ask your friends and family to give you some support; maybe someone can take the kids for a couple of hours once a week to give you time;

If you do a lot of volunteer jobs cut back on them;

Cut back on your social outings (if you only go out once a week then keep that date – it’s important to have some social time).

This might all sound a bit harsh but if you want to be a successful writer then sacrifices must be made.

Set a Daily Word Goal

Set yourself a goal every day to write as many words, maybe 500, 1000, 1500, whatever you can manage. It doesn’t matter if it's only 100; write something every single day.

Do keep in mind that it takes 21 days to form a habit so stick at it and kick anything that gets in the way into touch.