It is Back to School
By Barbara Ann Cerda | Contributing Writer
Cooler days and carnal autumnal colors announce the awaited freedom for author moms to return to the business of composition. New school clothes and the scent of just bought supplies bring to mind comforting images from the art of Charles M. Schulz and Norman Rockwell. Lonely playgrounds come alive with youthful exuberance welcoming resumption of school, friendships, and the sharing of another waning summer’s events.
For many authors who happen to be mothers, the passing summer filled with family fun was also a time to curate memories for new stories. They are precious memoirs for new creatives saved for quiet moments. The inviting empty rooms filled with still afternoons invite the author to compose again. However, many authoresses spend their days working outside the home. They discover their muse within a few stolen precious moments on trains, planes, and buses or in the quiet of evening hours after a long day.
When we think of today’s busy mommy writers, our recollections go immediately to the most famous, JK Rowling and Anne Rice. They are part of different generations of mothers possessing the genius of creating captivating stories. Some profess that their children fueled their writing genius. The interesting dynamic of whether one or numerous progeny contributes to a better writer is up for closer examination. Some hold the view that there must be a limit to one offspring to achieve success as an author, says an article published in The Atlantic.
Of course, the ponderous of successful women writers with greater numbers of progenies refutes that premise immediately.
American Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Jane Smiley has three children and two stepchildren. Her response to that question is that children help in the creative process. JK Rowling and Pulitzer Award winning author Maya Angelo were single moms. They struggled while producing award-winning creatives in poetry, bestselling books, scripts, 12 Academy Award nominations, a Tony Award, and a Presidential Medal of Freedom. The great love of their children and their contribution to the quality of their work serves as testament, there is a unique quality in authors who happen to be mothers.
Consider this. Some mothers will express ambivalence. Ideologies on what composes a great mom vary greatly. Add our own self-assessments the list grows. Motherhood is never easy no matter the number of offspring. Authoring is a full time job. An author logs in countless hours to produce their great works of wonder.
Let me share the following tips that may help:
- Create a dedicated space that is a no man’s land for everyone except mom. Keep it sanctified and free from intrusion. Make it clear that the family interrupts your work for emergencies only and clearly define the worthy crisis.
- Keep the door closed during important calls while keeping it slightly ajar at other times indicating mom is at work. Redefine often what interruptions constitute an emergency. That should be easy…you are a writer.
- It is very hard to broker publishing deals or communicate with your editor when you are bouncing a fussy babe in your lap. If possible, hire or procure a babysitter when these calls are scheduled.
- When dinner is done remind family members that you are entering your sanctuary and are not available during your prescribed hours.
- Your sanctuary should be inviting and personal.
Motherhood is an amazing gift and in every generation, new writer moms come to be. The creative outcomes from this love and needful collaboration are priceless. The exciting miracles of authoresses, who seem to blend the winning formula of being a mother and writer, always seem to happen.
We want to know what you think at ChapterSee.