Tom Harris

We are all busy. So I’m not saying that I am busy and no-one else is – so let’s get this straight. I’m no busier than you or anyone you know, because however busy you think you are someone else is always busier, juggling work, studying, family, relationships, money, hobbies, fruit, balls and chairs if they’re exceptional. Have I got that point across… excellent now I’ll begin.

Oh, I need to blog, but I just feel I need to prioritise my time working on honing my craft. So much to create and so much to learn about the writing process – how can I afford to spend time blogging when I should be working!!!

I’m in my first year of a new job at Portsmouth University, which I love, and when the day is done and the night comes down and the moon is shining through I can be found writing, editing, proofreading, swearing, ripping, shredding, rewriting, rewriting and rewriting my new novel. I love writing, I guess you know that’s true and I love my job – I’m lucky, but… I’m still busy. Okay, fair enough, that lady on the Sussex coast with all the cats and the degrees and the 18 businesses is far busier, but me… yep, I’m a little busy.

So, when I aint got nothin’ but the urge to blog, I tend to stop and work on my manuscript because time is precious and I never want to take my foot off the ball or my eye off the pedal, because that’s when mistakes are made! It’s always on my mind and one thing I can say is that being submerged in a novel is a wonderful place to be… and even though the distractions of life are always pulling me down that’s fine, because that’s the way it is – that’s life! That’s what all the people say!!!

But, I’m still busy whatever anyone says – yes, I know Mr Archer from Nottingham that you run 11 Fletcher outlets and have 21 daughters to clothe, feed and defend from young dart-playing suitors; I bow to your busyness, and your business – but, guess what, I’m still quite busy.

So, how do I write and maintain a blog when I’m really busy, plenty of people do it, so what’s wrong with me?

In pondering this question, I listened to The Beatles.

Yes! Eureka! Like a projectile Ringo Starr crashing into Lucy in a diamond embedded sky it hit me.

I could write a small blog. Wow! The Brain of Britain has arrived!

I’m busy, everyone’s busy, so I could scribe and prescribe a small blog which takes less time to put together and less time to read and then we’re all happy, right? And that nagging need to blog is soothed – how bloomin’ marvellous.

But how long is short?

It was right there in the lyrics.

8 Lines a Week seems about perfect.

And no that has nothing to do with recreational snortage before you ask, I haven’t the time to lose days on end with all that stuff – have you not listened to a word I said?

Anyway, must dash, I have a new blog to prep’ because I’m, yep… how did you guess?