{"id":1008,"date":"2009-01-27T15:27:15","date_gmt":"2009-01-27T22:27:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/?p=1008"},"modified":"2014-08-13T23:33:36","modified_gmt":"2014-08-14T06:33:36","slug":"book-review-writer-mama-how-to-raise-a-writing-career-alongside-your-kids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/2009\/01\/27\/book-review-writer-mama-how-to-raise-a-writing-career-alongside-your-kids\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Review: <i>Writer Mama: how to raise a writing career alongside your kids <\/i>"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Have you ever thought about making a living as a writer?\u00a0 That thought has been a constant companion of mine for the past 25 years.\u00a0 Yes, 25 years, and it was just about exactly one year ago that I actually started doing something about it.<a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/1582974411?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;tag=honeymooning-20&amp;amp;linkCode=as2&amp;amp;camp=1789&amp;amp;creative=390957&amp;amp;creativeASIN=1582974411\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-6621\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"6621\" data-permalink=\"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/2009\/01\/27\/book-review-writer-mama-how-to-raise-a-writing-career-alongside-your-kids\/writer-mama\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?fit=260%2C303\" data-orig-size=\"260,303\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"writer-mama\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?fit=260%2C303\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6621 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=260%2C303\" alt=\"writer mama by Christina Katz\" width=\"260\" height=\"303\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Now with a little one on the way, I wondered if that dream would need to be postponed yet again.\u00a0 I really shouldn&#8217;t be so quick to sacrifice my dreams yet again to cater to the needs of everyone else around me.\u00a0 One of the things I most want to provide for my daughter is a good example.\u00a0 I want my daughter to grow up looking up to a mother who is loving and kind and attentive, yes, but also self-actualized, intellectually stimulated, self-sufficient, engaging, happy, and living up to her potential.\u00a0 I want to provide this example to my daughter because I wish these traits for her (in addition to the fact that I&#8217;m worth it, dammit).<\/p>\n<p><em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/1582974411?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=honeymooning-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=1582974411\">Writer Mama<\/a><\/em><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.assoc-amazon.com\/e\/ir?t=honeymooning-20&amp;l=as2&amp;o=1&amp;a=1582974411\" alt=\"\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" border=\"0\" \/>, by Christina Katz, talks about how to get a writing career off the ground while you have small children in tow: start small while babies absorb so much of your attention and grow your business as your children gain greater degrees of independence and self-sufficiency.<\/p>\n<p>Topics covered in the book include (among many others):<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>how to manage writing time around caring for children<\/li>\n<li>how to deal with the &#8220;clips catch-22,&#8221; or how to get published if you&#8217;ve never been published<\/li>\n<li>the business of writing: queries, article submissions, contracts, negotiations<\/li>\n<li>managing your home and while managing your writing business<\/li>\n<li>how to conduct interviews<\/li>\n<li>editing and polishing your work<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>One of the hardest things to deal with for many who work from home, not just moms, is the fact that others tend to disrespect the time of the home worker.\u00a0\u00a0 When people pack up their briefcase and head off to the office, that work time is respected and to some extent, even sacred.\u00a0 Those working from home seldom get the same respect unless they are very clear about setting their boundaries with others in advance.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Because of People Who Don&#8217;t Get It, if you are not good at setting boundaries with adults and children, you&#8217;re going to need to start practicing.\u00a0 I suggest you start sooner rather than later. If you wait until you have a deadline looming to try to convince family members that your work matters and that you deserve support in gettting it done, you will be sorry (and probably late with your work too).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>I&#8217;m really appreciating this book.\u00a0 It is well organized so specific topical information is easy to find.\u00a0 I suspect I will be consulting it regularly over the coming months and years.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>FTC Disclosure<\/strong>: affiliate links were used in this post.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Have you ever thought about making a living as a writer?\u00a0 That thought has been a constant companion of mine for the past 25 years.\u00a0 Yes, 25 years, and it was just about exactly one year ago that I actually started doing something about it. Now with a little one on the way, I wondered [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6621,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[772,763,138,770],"tags":[4,268,6,269,654,886],"class_list":["post-1008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-creating-a-living","category-creating-a-living","category-parenting-living-well","category-writing-blogging","tag-books","tag-boundaries","tag-reviews","tag-what-i-wish-for-my-child","tag-work-habits-2","tag-writing","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?fit=260%2C303","blog_post_layout_featured_media_urls":{"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=150%2C150",150,150,true],"full":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?fit=260%2C303",260,303,false]},"categories_names":{"772":{"name":"Business","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/creating-a-living\/business-creating-a-living\/"},"763":{"name":"Creating a Living","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/creating-a-living\/"},"138":{"name":"Parenting &amp; Family","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/parenting-living-well\/"},"770":{"name":"Writing &amp; Blogging","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/creating-a-living\/writing-blogging\/"}},"tags_names":{"4":{"name":"Books","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/tag\/books\/"},"268":{"name":"boundaries","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/tag\/boundaries\/"},"6":{"name":"reviews","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/tag\/reviews\/"},"269":{"name":"what I wish for my child","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/tag\/what-i-wish-for-my-child\/"},"654":{"name":"work habits","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/tag\/work-habits-2\/"},"886":{"name":"Writing","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/tag\/writing\/"}},"comments_number":0,"wpmagazine_modules_lite_featured_media_urls":{"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=150%2C150",150,150,true],"cvmm-medium":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=260%2C300",260,300,true],"cvmm-medium-plus":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=260%2C207",260,207,true],"cvmm-portrait":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=260%2C303",260,303,true],"cvmm-medium-square":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=260%2C303",260,303,true],"cvmm-large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=260%2C303",260,303,true],"cvmm-small":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?resize=130%2C95",130,95,true],"full":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/writer-mama.jpg?fit=260%2C303",260,303,false]},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1fDeG-gg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":171,"url":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/2008\/04\/09\/my-aspirations-or-why-i-want-to-be-a-food-writer\/","url_meta":{"origin":1008,"position":0},"title":"My Aspirations, or Why I Want to be a Food Writer","author":"Judy Schwartz Haley","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"According to Womens Wear Daily, during Monday's New York Women in Communications' Matrix Awards, \"Top Chef\" judge Padma Lakshmi was quoted saying: \"I'm living my mother's dream, I sit on my ass, I eat and I talk.\" .","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Creating a Living&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Creating a Living","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/creating-a-living\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/07\/bird-2.png?fit=640%2C457&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/07\/bird-2.png?fit=640%2C457&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/07\/bird-2.png?fit=640%2C457&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":179,"url":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/2008\/04\/26\/writing-down-the-bones-by-natalie-goldberg\/","url_meta":{"origin":1008,"position":1},"title":"Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg","author":"Judy Schwartz Haley","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"I read Natalie Goldberg's Writing Down the Bones the first time in 1990. I was twenty and had just decided that I want to be a writer when I grow up. I had never imagined such a book: a writer writing about writing. It's a simple concept, I know. But\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Creating a Living&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Creating a Living","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/creating-a-living\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/07\/bird-4.png?fit=640%2C457&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/07\/bird-4.png?fit=640%2C457&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/07\/bird-4.png?fit=640%2C457&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":252,"url":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/women-authoring-change\/","url_meta":{"origin":1008,"position":2},"title":"Women Authoring Change &#8211; Whidbey Island Writers Association","author":"Judy Schwartz Haley","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Whidbey Island Writers Association hosts an open house the first Tuesday of every month at the Rockhopper in Clinton. This Tuesday I hopped on a ferry to Whidbey Island to attend the meeting. I'm so glad I did. The focus of the July meeting was Hedgebrook, a retreat for women\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Creating a Living&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Creating a Living","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/creating-a-living\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Whidbey Island Writers Association","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/WIWA-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12145,"url":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/2023\/02\/18\/6-benefits-of-freewriting\/","url_meta":{"origin":1008,"position":3},"title":"6 Benefits of Freewriting","author":"Judy Schwartz Haley","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Freewriting is a simple writing practice that helps prime the writer for creativity and inspiration among other benefits","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Inspiration&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Inspiration","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/life-skills\/inspiration-living-well\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/6-benefits-of-freewriting.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/6-benefits-of-freewriting.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/6-benefits-of-freewriting.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/6-benefits-of-freewriting.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/6-benefits-of-freewriting.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":12248,"url":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/2023\/10\/29\/october-is-selective-mutism-awareness-month\/","url_meta":{"origin":1008,"position":4},"title":"October is Selective Mutism Awareness Month","author":"Judy Schwartz Haley","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Selective mutism is a rare disorder, a communication disability, affecting less than 1% of kids.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;courage&quot;","block_context":{"text":"courage","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/courage\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"october is selective mutism awareness month","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/selective-mutism-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/selective-mutism-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/selective-mutism-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/selective-mutism-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/selective-mutism-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":216,"url":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/2008\/05\/30\/the-reading-room\/","url_meta":{"origin":1008,"position":5},"title":"The Reading Room","author":"Judy Schwartz Haley","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"For the past couple of months the Husband has been encouraging me to pack up my goodies and go spend a day studying in the reading room in the Suzzillo Library at the University of Washington. It's just a couple blocks away, but I've been resisting. For some reason I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Adventure&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Adventure","link":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/category\/life-skills\/adventure-living-well\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"suzzallo reading room","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/harry-potter-room.png?fit=1200%2C800&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/harry-potter-room.png?fit=1200%2C800&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/harry-potter-room.png?fit=1200%2C800&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/harry-potter-room.png?fit=1200%2C800&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/harry-potter-room.png?fit=1200%2C800&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1008"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1008\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6623,"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1008\/revisions\/6623"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeejitters.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}