Writer Interview-Meggan Connors

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Please join me in welcoming fellow Reno author, Meggan Connors

Creative Pursuit: Author

Day Job: Speech Pathologist & Mom

How do you balance your creative pursuits with your day-to-day commitments? I can honestly say, I am not sure I know what balance is. I get up around 5:45 to do Twitter and Facebook from my iPhone, so I don’t have to get out of bed and put in my contacts. After that, I get the kids ready for school/preschool while I get ready for work, and we’re out the door by 7:30.

After work, it’s baseball, piano, soccer, and, in the summer, swimming lessons. Then comes dinner and homework, followed by showers, getting ready for bed, and story time. There’s the occasional PTO meeting or a parent training night at work, so sometimes, I don’t even get home until 7:30 or 8:00. Once 8:00 rolls around, the kids go to bed, and then I sit down to write–nearly every night. Not every single one—I took a day off two days ago, in fact. But I find my productivity decreases if I don’t sit myself down and write, even if it’s only for twenty minutes, and even if it’s crap. Because, let’s face it, not everything I type will be beautiful, but that’s what editing is for, right?

I’ve given up a lot of things in pursuit of my dream of being a published author. I rarely watch TV. I don’t do yoga, which is something I really wanted to do. I don’t even get that much sleep, because I’m often writing until 11:30 or midnight. What I’ve discovered is that I can’t do it without help, and my husband and friends have been great in that respect. If I’m really feeling the muse, he’ll do dishes and laundry. Maybe not the way I would have, but honestly, I’ve learned that done is done, and nothing else really matters after that. After all, everyone has clean underwear, and we have plates to eat from. Can’t ask for more than that!

I’ve also learned to say no. I work in Special Ed, and I’m a pleaser, so I spent years saying yes to things I didn’t want to do. But I’ve discovered that if something makes my life more difficult, or causes strife and disharmony, it has to go, or, if I can’t rid myself of it entirely, it has to be put on the back burner. I can handle work drama, because it’s always there. But I have to know when to say no, to recognize that even I have my limits, and I think I’ve started that process.

What’s next for you?  Right now, I’m working on the sequel to The Marker  , which is tentatively titled Shanghaied. I hope to continue writing, and to have a few more books out in the near future.

Favorite guilty pleasure? My favorite guilty pleasure is…really bad reality TV. Not The Bachelor or The Amazing Race (which I enjoyed back when I still watched a little TV every night). No, I’m talking survivalist reality TV. Doomsday Preppers, Dual Survival, Man v. Wild. Not because I’m planning on doing any surviving—let’s face it, if there’s some sort of disaster, my behind is pretty much toast—but because it’s entertaining to watch other people do it. Not only that, but I can justify watching it because it’s research. That’s what I tell myself, anyway.

Thanks for having me! I’ve enjoyed being here today!

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5 thoughts on “Writer Interview-Meggan Connors”

    • That is so true! And I’ve actually learned a lot from my crazy reality TV (not the least of which is that I am woefully unprepared…and I’m not the huge worrier I thought I was!)

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    • Thanks, Regina!

      I’d say it’s discipline, but it’s not. It’s the no sleep thing, which works great until you crash. I might have been a touch cranky this weekend. Even the cat was giving me the evil eye. Granted, she gives everyone the evil eye (because, well, she’s a cat), but still.

      Oh, and writing fizzles during submission season. I count that as writing time, because it’s WORK. Writing is the easy part of a really hard process. The researching agents/publishers, submitting, waiting, rejections, subsequent pity party, pep talk, and starting the whole process over again is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.

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  3. You’re a busy woman! Congrats on keeping all those balls in the air. I’m a Man vs. Wild fan, too. He’s like MacGyver in the wilderness. LOL

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