During the early years of parenthood, I wasted a lot of time feeling sorry for myself.

Why can’t I have my own dedicated writing space? Why can’t I have blocks of uninterrupted time?

The overwhelming demands of being a stay-at-home mom almost shut down my creativity. In time, thank heavens, I stopped griping and started looking for solutions.

My idea? Instead of waiting for the perfect conditions, I snatched time.

I wrote when the kids were napping.

I wrote late at night.

I wrote when they were engrossed in a movie.

I squeezed writing into the tiny openings in my days.

Sometimes I only had five minutes, but I wrote.

By making the most of a few free moments here and there, I kept my writing identity alive.

This spontaneous approach made for a messy writing life, however.

I left a trail of pens throughout the house. I scratched fleeting phrases onto the backs of envelopes. I scribbled a line of poetry onto a Wendy’s receipt and shoved it into our minivan’s cup holders.

If I could go back, I would organize my writing ideas in one central container. I needed a master notebook for all those scraps, or a notes app on my phone to tap out those ideas.

That would have been smart. I have no idea where that Wendy’s receipt ended up, so that lyrical line is lost forever.

Please learn from my mistake and find an official container for your work.

How you corral and contain your ideas is totally up to you—there’s no single approach for every writer. I recommend you decide on something you can carry with you all the time.

For example, a simple manila envelope you stuff into an oversized bag that goes with you everywhere could contain all your scraps of paper if you scribble on whatever’s nearby. An accordion file or a 3-ring binder with folders and dividers snapped into it are more organized versions of that.

If you’re more suited to digital options, you can use any number of apps for iOs or Android. For example, in this interview, Bryan Collins of Become a Writer Today talks about how he uses Day One, a journaling app, for all of his writing notes, as well. 

Despite the mess, I realized a way forward in the midst of motherhood with no time to write: I seized tiny moments.

I learned that a single sentence or well-crafted phrase composed in five minutes could lay the foundation for a future manuscript.

As a result, I made solid progress on project after project. I built a respectable portfolio that led to a respectable freelance writing career.

Time and opportunities opened up as my kids grew more independent. I wrote books, joined writing communities, worked as an editor, and, as you know, established a coaching business.

All of that was possible because I made the most of five minutes here and five minutes there.

That approach helped my “writing self” survive those early childrearing years and, in 2014, four years of extreme eldercare chaos. Thankfully, expectations have eased up, and my current life stage permits me blocks of time to write, but you know what? I still try to seize every opportunity.

To this day, I write during those tiny moments that free up—it keeps me on track toward achieving my writing goals.

If you don’t already, I hope you try it yourself next time you feel you have no time to write:

Write whenever and wherever you can…for as long as you can.

​In her book The Right to Write, Julia Cameron says:

The ‘if-I-had-time’ lie is a convenient way to ignore the fact that novels require being written and that writing happens a sentence at a time. Sentences can happen in a moment. Enough stolen moments, enough stolen sentences, and a novel is born–without the luxury of time…Yes, it is daunting to think of finding time to write an entire novel, but it is not so daunting to think of finding time to write a paragraph, even a sentence. And paragraphs, made of sentences, are what novels are really made of. (Cameron)

Next time you have 5 minutes free, try one of these writing tasks…

If you write nonfiction as an author, essayist, blogger, or writer of micro content on social media, here are a few five-minute tasks to tackle (these are drawn from a longer list available at annkroeker.com/5minutewriter).

• brainstorm key points or subtopics for upcoming project

If you write fiction as a novelist or you’re a short story writer (or both), here are a few five-minute tasks to tackle (these are drawn from a longer list available at annkroeker.com/5minutewriter).

• create a brief character sketch for a new or existing character

No matter what complicates your schedule—whether you have a full-time job or you’re a full-time caregiver—write what you can, when you can.

Because the conditions are never perfect. And the words will come, even five minutes at a time.

Grab this fillable workbook for ideas to make the most of every writing opportunity. You’ll get:

• Lists of tiny tasks you can tackle when five minutes opens up so you make progress in your writing (for both fiction and nonfiction writers!)

Cameron, Julia. The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life. Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam, 1999.