Writing While Ill

By YA author Andrea Buginsky

You know how hard it is to fit writing time in around school. So what happens when you’re sick? Now you’re stuck with makeup work that you don’t feel up to doing and still trying to figure out how to get some writing time in. There are several things you can do to help with your writing even while you’re sick.

     1.   Don’t worry about it.

You’re sick! Take the time you need to recover. Relax, watch TV, listen to music, sleep…whatever you need to do to take care of yourself.

2.      Kill two birds with one stone.

While home from school, you probably have plenty of writing assignments to make up for your English, social studies, and history classes. Use your makeup work as a writing exercise. They’re a great way to work on your spelling, grammar, and writing style.

3.      Catch up on your reading.

You’ve heard plenty of times that writers need to read. While you’re laid up in bed, use the time to catch up on your reading. You don’t have to read your textbooks all the time. Take a break and read some books that are on your To Be Read list. Enjoy!

4.      Use the time to think.

If you have a story you’ve been working on, use your down time while you’re sick to go over the story in your head. You can think through plot and character development, and come up with ideas on where the story should go. Downtime is also a great time to think of new stories you want to write.

5.      Use time management skills.

When the time comes that you’re ready to jump in and work on your makeup work, use your time management skills that you’ve put to good use in your writing endeavors to get the work done. You can reward yourself for completing missed assignments by giving yourself free writing time in between.

When you’re sick and missing school, don’t make matters worse by worrying about losing writing time. Take care of yourself and use your downtime wisely.

Andrea Buginsky is the author of "The Chosen" and "My Open Heart," both available from Solstice Publishing.