Two weeks ago, I learned just how fast life can flip with a phone call.
An hour later, I collapsed into a chair next to my husband in the ER, fielding text messages and typing test results into my phone’s Notes app, all while trying to remember how to breathe.
(I also discovered that I’m not at all the calm, logical wife I imagined I’d be during a medical emergency.)
After a bonus return visit to the ER later that same evening, writing was the last thing on my mind.
But this time, something different happened.
And it’s changing how I think about writing during a crisis.
Maybe this isn’t an article about chaos, but about accountability, and how we can set anchors in place before life goes sideways.
When Systems Hold Steady (and You Don’t Have To)
While I was balancing medical updates and controlling (trying to) my adrenaline, a new client booked a service. My systems handled everything — forms, the contract and invoicing — without pulling my attention away from what was important at that moment.
Phew and hallelujah for strong processes!
It also reminded me of writing with a flexible outline or scene map. It serves as a placeholder when (not if) a writing slump hits, and keeps your story from disappearing.
Too often, when life goes sideways, creative writing is the first thing to go.
My 4-5 Year Implosion Pattern
Every few years, life blows up my writing plans. 2012. 2016. 2020-2021. (Apparently, I run on a 4-5-year cycle of upheaval. Hmm.) Different seasons and different circumstances, certainly, but each time my story slips to the bottom of the list.
From 2012 through 2021, my personal life kept shifting in ways that swallowed my creative energy. Major transitions and family upheavals — plus COVID — kept me off balance. Sometimes joyful, other times challenging. And man, do I struggle to maintain a consistent writing schedule when that happens!
Throw a medical scare into the mix (my husband is fine, thank heaven!), and motivation goes out the window. Doctor’s appointments… prescriptions… making sure everyone eats. (Me, first and foremost. You do not want to see me hangry.)
Creative projects become optional.
And yet… the good stuff has also fueled me. I drafted two novels in 2006, starting while I was pregnant and then my first NaNoWriMo during my daughter’s newborn months. (She’s an excellent sleeper.) Then the toddler years hit, and my writing time evaporated.
But here’s the thing: the issue isn’t time. It’s bandwidth.
It’s emotional energy. And it’s the expectation that we’ll “come back to it when things settle”.
Things rarely settle.
I spent a decade waiting for life to stop exploding. I didn’t want to lose the thread of my novel. Not again.
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The Write Flow
Last month I announced The Write Flow, a writing accountability group that meets M/W/F at noon ET. I created it as a personal structure to keep myself writing despite my packed schedule.
Back in my grant writing days, my calendar filled weeks in advance with meetings and deadlines. I woke up at 4 a.m. most mornings just to journal or write before the daily work avalanche began. You know how that goes: the snooze button, the emails, the news headline… and suddenly it’s 9 a.m. and you haven’t had breakfast yet (hangry-me in a meeting is not fun).
Life is different now, but my calendar still fills up with client work, business tasks, onboarding…
At some point, I realized I didn’t need a perfect morning routine. I just needed other folks expecting me to show up.
So I made it simple with a standing commitment. It’s not every day, but it is predictable. A virtual room. Camera off, writing for 50 minutes.
Now, I’m almost done with my first draft. Just a couple more sessions to go.
And I look forward to that midday hour!
Accountability in Practice
The day after our two ER visits, I was getting ready to open the meeting room when my husband said he was hungry. Of course, I shifted priorities. At noon, I popped in to say hello and apologize for cutting the session short. A few days later, I received a sweet note from another writer checking in. She wrote:
“One good thing that has come out of this besides me setting aside that hour last week when you had to cancel. I have decided to set aside an hour [a] day for writing and an hour [a] day for working out as I just joined the gym and an hour a day for other individual tasks…”
This is exactly why I started this, and why I plan to do it again in January.
It mirrors fond memories of long days side-by-side (virtually) with teammates pushing toward a deadline. Someone to commiserate with and bounce ideas off of. It always energized me.
I didn’t need a perfect morning routine.
I needed an external anchor to keep me accountable.
It also hit home that life doesn’t have to calm down to write. Sometimes the writing is the calm I need.
Your Turn
If you’ve been meaning to block off time for your creative writing project, and you’re struggling to sit down to it — what’s the one hour this week you can protect? Let me know in the comments or send me a note!
If this resonated, you may also find some helpful ideas in Ten Ways to Fit Writing Time into a Busy Schedule (& Avoid Procrastination!). And if you’d like a low-pressure writing group to help you stay accountable, join The Write Flow sessions in January 2026.
Hi, I’m Rebecca Davis, Author Accelerator certified book coach, mystery lover, and former research administrator. I traded grant proposals for plot twists and now I get to help writers find their way through the maze of story and structure. I live on the South Carolina coast, and believe every story needs both a map and a little mystery. Explore Coaching Services →