Precious nights
Both me and Kat sleep weird hours. We like to get up mid-day (or preferably, early afternoon) and go to sleep when most people try to delay getting out of bed with as many snoozes as possible. I always had a hard time stopping whatever it was I was doing, just because there was a fixed time I had to get up at. It felt like such a shame to waste so many quiet hours that I often ended up sleeping far less than I should. As soon as I went to the university and had more control over my schedule, my sleeping hours began their unavoidable shift.
Writers have different ways to approach their work, with some getting up very early, using timers, having fixed break time and so on. My main problem is how easily distracted I sometimes become, particularly when I need to do my chores and edit what I had written earlier. During the day, there is always something going on: I get phone calls, visits, my dogs need their share of attention and I end up with very little work done, if any at all. Nights help me focus. It’s quiet, peaceful, and the glow of my tabletop lamp makes me oblivious to anything that isn’t in immediate reach.
When Kat and I write, we don’t have any fixed breaks, just work until one of us is too tired to go on, with time off to make coffee and food (surprise, surprise, I’m a coffee monster and pulled Kat into the madness). On a normal day, we start at 8 pm and retire at 4 am, but if we get very excited about something, that time can stretch up to 7 am. After that, all I need is a thick curtain over my window ;D
It gets even better when we work in one room (sadly, we’re still a few countries apart), because then, we get those brilliant ideas, like shopping in Tesco at midnight. We were once shocked to discover that Tesco 24 was closed (why is it called 24h anyway?), so our shopping trip at half two in the morning was for nothing. Imagine the walk of shame with empty tote bags, no coffee and, yes, the feeling of inadequacy! Damn you, crazy sleeping pattern!
What are your best writing hours? 🙂
Would you like to share your thoughts?