Since I relaunched this blog, there has been a recurring theme: how difficult it is to write with a small child. I know this isn’t a revelation, and that more functional moms manage to work full-time jobs and raise more than one child. But I was a chronic procrastinator struggling to write long before I had a child to blame for my lack of productivity.
This brings me to the topic at hand, alternatives to traditional writing. My ideal writing scenario would be to sit down at the desktop computer in my office for several hours each morning Monday through Friday. But, representing slackers everywhere, I not sure I would do that even if I could spare that much time away from my son.
Now, my recent 40th birthday has brought me both greater wisdom (LOL) and an iPad. It’s time explore other options for getting my writing done. In the past, I considered using my iPhone for simple writing tasks and dismissed the idea as soon as it was born. Despite the bevy of amazing apps, the screen and keyboard are just too small.
Is it possible to write a novel on an iPad? I’m writing this blog post on my iPad, and despite the learning curve, so far it’s not too bad. I’m actually doing something resembling work amidst my son hurling cars at me and watching Dora the Explorer! But I couldn’t imagine extended writing on this over-sensitive touch screen. Thinking ahead, my husband has already promised me the future purchase of an iPad keyboard. Problem one: potentially solved.
My next issue? Can I read and/or edit my work-in-progress on my iPad? The are a variety of file sharing apps available that I could explore, but my clever husband has solved that problem for me as well. With the Splashtop app I can control my desktop computer from my iPad. I can literally open my word-processing files and work on them from another room. Surely there are time lag and learning curves to overcome, but now I’m really getting somewhere.
With the endless supply of text editor/word processing apps available (I chose to go with Apple’s Pages app) creating new text to integrate into my WordPerfect files later is a simple hill to climb. Fancy bulletin board apps and handwriting apps make brainstorming fun and easy. I can even collect research, character profiles, pictures and notes all in one place (Evernote) for easy review as I write.
I’m excited to find out if I can make alternatives to my traditional writing environment work for me. I don’t know if these tools can help me finish a book overnight, but it may allow me to take baby steps in a process that had previously ground to a halt.
Of course, the only problem I still have to solve is how to avoid getting distracted by the array of games and entertainment that await me every time on turn on my iPad.
– Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
The file sharing/syncing will much more seamless with iCloud. Of course, what you REALLY need is a Babysitting App. Where’s iNanny when you need it?
John, is the iNanny babysitting me or the kid?