Tag: writing

Writing-Make the Time to Write

Photo credit: https://www.instagram.com/gerdaltmannpixabay/

Short Version: If you want to be a writer, you need to write. Finding the time to write can be difficult, but if you start small, setting simple goals, you can develop the habit of writing every day.

Introduction

As I begin to prep for NaNoWriMo (1), I’ve been thinking about how I can successfully carve out time for writing every day. This got me thinking. In the past, I’ve wasted a lot of time feeling I never had time to write. And so…I didn’t. I hear this a lot from other aspiring authors, they want to write, but they have no time. If you dream of writing, you have to make the time and develop writing habits.

Quick Backstory

I have four kids and am a stay-at-home mom. The primary caretaking of both the kids and house falls on me. Though the days are busy, I’ve always found time to do various projects, including building a house (no literally building a house from the foundation up). These projects benefited the family as a whole but rarely included writing.

8 months pregnant, building the walls to our future home.
Working around kids to build our patio.

The truth is, it’s not that I never had time; it’s that I never made time to write.  I didn’t make myself or my writing a priority. To me, writing was a hobby, something selfish I wanted to do benefiting only me. Therefore, I allowed my kids, husband, and household to become the only priority, feeling I didn’t deserve time for a silly hobby.

You Deserve To Follow Your Dreams

Photo Credit: Image by Marta Kulesza from Pixabay

Maybe someone needs to hear this; I know I needed it to kickstart my writing habit. I deserve to do something for myself. You deserve a chance to follow your dreams too. Your goals are just as important as your spouse getting a promotion, your son making the football team, or your daughter getting the lead in the school musical. Everyone deserves a shot at their dreams.

I take good care of my kids, I’m a supportive wife, and I work hard to keep everyone happy and healthy. But, I also deserve to be happy. It’s not selfish to take time out for yourself. An hour a day to work on your goals and dreams should be expected, not a reward you get once everyone else’s needs are met.

I always felt guilty for taking time away from the family to write. I often felt like Cinderella; if I finished all these chores, maybe I could go to the ball (write).

I take full responsibility for these thoughts and feelings. No one was telling me no; well, maybe society norms had a negative influence, but my husband and kids weren’t telling me no.

Now, my kids are all in school, and I take the entire morning to write. Somedays, I take a whole day to write, market, and build my author profile. I no longer feel guilty (well, sometimes a little, I’m still human). However, I don’t feel I have to beg and plead for time (even though this thought process was all in my head); I take time and own it because I’m more than just a wife, mom, and caretaker. I’m a writer.

Write Everyday

Photo Credit: Image by David Schwarzenberg from Pixabay

If you want to write, you have to write. There is no way around this fact. The first step is to create habits to get you writing every day. The first step is to figure out what you want to do with your writing. Become a published author? Become a blogger? Write for fun with no intention of sharing? These are all great goals.  Again, you have to write, not dream about writing, not think about writing, not plot out stories in your head. Sit down, pick up a pen or use the computer, and write.

 

 

Set Daily Goals

A great place to start is by setting a daily goal.  Write something, anything, besides a shopping or chore list; those don’t count. Write about your plans for the day, an event you hope to attend, or describe a chore in full detail. It doesn’t matter what you write, especially if you are starting; the goal is to create a habit of writing every day.

Daily Word Count

Set a daily word count goal. Start small, adding more words as you gain confidence. Many successful authors say aim for 500 words a day. It may not be plausible to hit that goal right away. Start small, 50 words a day, then 100, then 150, and so on until you get to 500. If you can manage more than 500 words a day, go for it.

Carve Out Time to Write

Again, start small; try committing 10-20 minutes to write each day. It may take a few days or weeks to carve out extra time. Make writing a priority. Tweak your schedule to create more time to write. Perhaps, getting up 30 mins earlier or staying up later. There should always be time for the essential things in life. Aim for at least 30 minutes a day dedicated to writing.

Take Back Your Time

The family at Iveagh Gardens in Dublin, Ireland.

As I mentioned before, I have four kids and a husband, a dog, and two cats. My home is in constant chaos. Meals, dishes, laundry, packing lunches, school drop-off and pick-up, shopping, walks, gardening, cleaning, homework, snuggles, and the list goes on and on. The neat freak in me struggled with the messy part for a long time. I had to force myself to stop caring.

This past year, my youngest started school, and I took back my mornings. No longer was I doing laundry, cleaning, dishes, dinner prep, or random household projects. No! As soon as I drop off the kids, the mornings are mine. I hole up in my office, and I do writing things for three glorious hours.

I’m lucky; I have the luxury of extra time. I don’t have a job, I’m not a single parent, I’m not a student, and I have time to take for myself. However, it has taken me over 10 years to get to this point.

If you work full-time or don’t have extra help, it will be challenging to make time to write. It’s not impossible, though. It means you have to be pickier when it comes to your time. You may not be able to write every day; maybe you pick two days a week to write for 30 mins. Some time is better than no time.

Write Anywhere and Everywhere

Perhaps no matter what, you don’t have an extra 15 minutes to commit solely to writing. Focus on the daily word count instead. Can you manage to write 500 words over the course of a day? 100 Words? 50 words? Make it a habit to write whenever and wherever you can. Don’t worry if it takes an entire day to reach your daily word goal. It’s crossing the finish line that matters, not how long it takes.

Places I’ve Written

  • Commute: I use a lot of public transportation. I have written on the bus, the train, the LUAS, and even in a car while on road trips. Of course, if you are driving, don’t write; bad idea. Writing in the park
  • Park: I take my kids to the playground a lot. On nice days, we spend countless hours at the park.I have written many blogs, jotted down story ideas, developed plot outlines, and written a few chapters between playing with the kids, watching them do tricks, and dishing out snacks.
  • Beach: I’ve set myself on a blanket and written while the kids and my husband played in the water or sand. Of course, I took time to look for shells and help create sandcastles.
  • Hotel Rooms: Vacations with my family include playgrounds, walks, and a lot of downtime. While the kids unwind with a show, my husbandand I write. He mainly blogs about the trips while I write whatever happens to be in my head. Writing in an Air BnB in Malaga, Spain
  • Planes: I’m not a fan of flying, so it’s helpful if I can pull out my phone and get lost in a draft to distract myself during take-off. Writing also helps fill the time until I’m safely back on solid ground again.
  • Anywhere: I’m not the person always writing, but if an idea or scene pops in my head, it doesn’t matter where I am; I’ll open the Word app and start typing.

Tools I Use On

Phone: I used to carry around a small notebook and pen to jot down notes; that is when I remembered to grab them. I downloaded the MS Office app to my phone, and it has been a game-changer. I almost always have my phone, so no excuses. Not to mention, all my documents automatically sync to my OneDrive, allowing me to move between my phone and computer seamlessly.

Arteck BlueTooth Keyboard: I’m horrible at texting; I’m a one-finger typist on my phone. My husband bought me a Bluetooth keyboard, and it’s fantastic. It folds up and can be taken anywhere. Unfolded, it can be used as a standard keyboard.

Arteck Bluetooth Keyboard
Wooden phone stand

Phone Stand: I have a very cheap phone stand I picked up at our version of the dollar store. It’s a simple, two-piece wooden stand that folds down flat, and I can use it anywhere.

Conclusion

You deserve to follow dreams. If your dream is to be a writer, the only thing standing in your way is you. Time can seem like a distant dream; however, if you want something bad enough, you have to take the time to grab it.

  • Writing 100-200 words a day is an attainable goal. Make small goals in order to build a writing habit.
  • Carve out time each day, whether it’s 10 mins, 20 mins, or an hour.
  • Share your goals with family members. Let them know when your writing time is so they can leave you alone.
  • Use your time wisely. If you find yourself stuck in line at the store or sitting idly at the park, turn that into writing time.
  • Most importantly, don’t talk about writing; write

1. NaNoWriMoNaNoWriMo home.:  “National Novel Writing Month began in 1999 as a daunting but straightforward challenge: to write 50,000 words of a novel in thirty days. It takes place during the month of November.”

How to Choose a Pen Name

Choosing to use a pen name can be a tough decision. Don’t think of it as losing your identity, rather gaining an extra personality. Knowing you want a pen name is only half the battle. How do you choose a pen name?

1) Narrow Down Your Genre

You should already know what genre you are writing for. If you don’t, stop everything and figure that out. Narrowing down your genre is the first step in getting to know your audience. Consider names that flow well with your chosen genre. For instance, if you write for children, think light-hearted, easy to pronounce names. Likewise, mysteryous names for the mystery writer, sexy harlot names for the romance author, and a great detective sounding name for the crime or thriller author.

2) Variations of your Own Name

If you aren’t looking to stray too far from your given name, start with some variations. Use your initials and keep the last name. Try out your middle name as first name, or first and middle. You can also do some variations of your name. My name is Michelle so I could use Mich, Elle, Chelle, Shell, Shelly, Michael, Mitchel (which I use), Mitch, and so on.

3) Name Generators

I love all the name generators found online these days. They are perfect to use when naming characters and places in my books. Why not use one to find a good pen name? Here are two you can try:

Name Generator (name-generator.org.uk)

Fantasy name generators. Names for all your fantasy characters.

4) Check for Popularity

If you know anything about the Actor’s Guild, no two actors can have the same name. That isn’t necessarily the case in the writing world, but it should be an unwritten rule. Your name should be as unique as the books you create. Therefore, once you narrow down a few pen names, run them through some search engines and see how many hits you get. Likewise, run the name on Amazon to see what sort of competition you would have. Ideally, you want a name that is not already taken; this will ensure you dominate any search engine as well as give you the ability to purchase the domain name.

Conclusion

Choosing a pen name opens a world of opportunity. Once you figure out some basic tips on how to choose a pen name, the process can be both entertaining and exciting. Who knows, perhaps you’ll come up with a few great character names in the process. Happy hunting!

 

 

Why I Use a Pen Name

 

When I first started creating the Magic Cube series, I hemmed and hawed over what name I would write under. I’m sure I was overly dramatic about the whole thing; I am a writer, after all; we have a flair for the dramatic. I always imagined I would write under the name I was born with and pay homage to my ancestors. The very thought of using a pen name sent a chill through me; I was horrified by the idea. How would my family feel? Would I be spitting on the very name that brought me into this world?

Then, I pulled myself together, and I remembered I was an introvert. I love hiding in the shadows. If I used a pen name, I could hide behind this extravagant persona. After taking to the internet and doing an obnoxious amount of research, I came up with a few other really great reasons to use a pen name.

1) I have a common name

Michelle Peterson is the name I was born with. Michelle is okay if I had some oddball last name, but I don’t. I have one of the 100 most common last names in the US. Then, I went and married a Miller…now I was in the top 10 most common last names.  Why is all this information on popularity important?  Search Engines.

There are millions of books out there. It’s hard to market a book, especially if thousands of people already have established web pages with your name on them. The last thing anyone wants is to get buried in the search engines. Searchability is one of the most critical aspects of building a brand and gaining publicity.

2) Building a Brand

Self-publishing includes a ton of marketing. You are essentially creating a brand around your author name. You will want to create social media accounts and build an author website.

I knew I wanted to buy a domain name and build a website. I also wanted a name unique enough to show up on the first page of any given search engine. Hardly anyone scrolls past the first page. If you aren’t there, how will anyone find you?

3) Introvert Problems

As mentioned above, I’m an introvert and horribly shy. I love talking to people and hearing their stories; I’m not so good about sharing my own. Talking about writing and publishing is terrifying to me. It is entirely out of my comfort zone. Marketing for someone else? Now, that’s something I can do.

It sounds silly, I know. I’m marketing for myself, hiding behind someone else.

What’s in a Name?

I finally decided to go with a pen name. Now came the hard part, what name to use?

The Magic Cube Chapter books are geared toward early readers. I need a name they can all pronounce and remember. Also, after reading about J.K. Rowling and why she used initials, I wanted something gender-neutral.

Mitchel Maree is born

For as long as I can remember, my grandfather always called me Mitchel. Maybe he secretly wanted more grandsons; I don’t know, but it stuck. I have a couple of uncles who use this pet name to this day.

My middle name is Marie. I messed with the spelling and ended up with a French last name.

I have been using this pen name for about a year now. When my first book came out, I felt uncomfortable telling people I wrote it under a pen name. Now, I’ve embraced the writer in me, the author I call Mitchel Maree.

Conclusion

I choose a pen name to build a brand, be more marketable and easy to find, and as a way to keep some anonymity.

 

 

Character Development: Creating the Watson Children

Character Development Struggles

When I first started writing, I struggled with character development. I completed my very first manuscript, an adult suspense book, about ten years ago. I sent out countless queries begging agents to represent me, and I received numerous rejections letters in return. One agent took the time to respond with constructive criticism; my storyline was interesting, but they couldn’t connect with the characters. Ooof, that one stung a bit. Thus began my decade-long struggle to create characters worthy enough to be featured in my stories.

Since that first attempt at publishing crashed and burned, life took over and moved me in a different direction. I shelved my writing while I took on the challenge of motherhood, four times over. I wrote on and off during my children’s infant stage, but it wasn’t until my youngest child started school, I could focus on writing again.

Modeling After Real People

In another blog, which you can read here, I explain how I came up with the Mystery of the Cursed Elves idea. The book is centered on four siblings’ adventures; those children are loosely based on my own kids. This time around, I really wanted to nail the characters in the hopes of creating a really great series. I figured if I used real people as my models, it would be hard to fail.

As I sat down to write the story, I picked out each child’s most prominent personality traits and then embellished them a bit.

To my great wonderment and surprise, writing these characters came easy. In all honestly, I didn’t even think about the four children; they simply came into being and worked with me to tell the story. In fact, it wasn’t until a few Beta Readers mentioned how fun and relatable the characters were that I really understood what I had done. I managed to develop great characters because I knew their personalities like the back of my hand. Years of motherhood gave me the insight I needed, and all I did was write the story as if my own children were in it.

If I ever struggled with “What would Max do?” or “How would Sophie react to that?” I thought about the child they were modeled after and found my answers. It was a no brainer and, in hindsight, quite impressive. I discovered something here as if a light bulb switched on in my creative mind.

My Favorite Character to Write

I get the most compliments on Parker. My Beta readers love Parker; her personality shines through most effectively. Author confession, she is my favorite character to write for. Parker is based on my youngest child, Roxi, my spunky, wild child. And although Parker is an exaggerated version of Roxi, their personalities are similar.

Roxi is younger than Parker in real life; she was only 4 when my first book was published. In the books, Parker is six. Since the children go on many wacky adventures, they all needed to be slightly older for the stories to make sense. Some of the things Parker does would be far-fetched if she were only four. That being said, both Roxi and Parker share an adventurous and bold disposition. Although Roxi isn’t quite as fearless as Parker, she shares the same spunk and spirit. Parker is the embodiment of what I think Roxi will be as she gets older.

I love writing her parts because of her fearlessness; she is the polar opposite of myself. While I tend to think before acting, I love that Parker acts without thinking. Its so different from my own experiences, but almost freeing in a way. Its honestly the way I wish I could be sometimes, running at things head first, completely spontaneous, without a single thought to the consequences. Parker can do all this because she knows her siblings will be there if she does end up in over her head.

The Other Kids

Sophie, the oldest sister in the series, is based on my oldest daughter, Mila. Mila has always been a “little mother” to her siblings. She is kind, caring, helpful, and always nurturing, just like Sophie in the books. In our family, Mila is the natural leader, but I gave that role to Max in the series; I wanted him to be important in driving the plot forward.

Max is modeled after my only boy, Maddex. Like Max, my son also loves adventure and problem-solving. He isn’t quite as bold or outgoing as Max, but he can be very persistent and determined when he gets an idea in his head. Much like Max, he gets along well with his sisters, and they spend quite a bit of time together.

Violet is a mixture of my middle child and myself as a child. Khaleesi is quiet but has an active imagination. Her personality is more passive, often allowing her ideas to be easily overshadowed and dismissed by her bolder, louder sisters. Like myself, her imagination is vivid and overactive; in fact, when I find myself struggling with the plot, she is my go-to gal, often helping to spark my creative juices and get me back on track.

Lessons Learned – Developing Characters

I have learned so much from writing this first book. I now know I am capable of creating characters my readers not only relate to but will cheer for. While building characters is not my strongest trait, I can put into practice what I learned from this series in future writings. 

  • Basing characters on real people works well for me. It takes the guesswork out of creating a personality from scratch; I already know the traits.
  • A character needs to feel like a real person. Everybody has their own specific traits and personality, so work to make that shine in everything they do.
  • Bring the personality to life. I don’t want to tell my readers what a character is like, I want to show them. Use dialogue and action to really accentuate and amplify those traits; bring the character to life.

I’m looking forward to putting all I have learned into practice and meeting all the new characters lurking around in my head.

 

 

Keywords: developing characters, fiction characters, book characters, character building

My Writing Process

 

 

 

People are often curious about what an author’s writing process looks like. Every author has their own style and their own process for completing a novel. Below, I list out what my typical writing process looks like.  

Ideas:

My ideas come from everywhere. It may start with something I read or watch, and wonder would happen if they made a different choice. It could start with a simple idea such as writing a story about Christmas or about fairies. My current work in progress all started with a Fairy Door; I wanted the Watson children to go through a fairy door. I crafted my story around that idea.

Whatever the idea may be, it is normally a short thought or sentence that I build a story around. “What if the elves tried to ruin Christmas?” or “What if the kids turned into fairies?”

 

Outline:

I don’t do outlines. I tried it once and ended up changing the entire book halfway through, making the original outline a waste of time. I consider my first draft the outline of the book.

 

First Draft:

I start with my premise and idea and I write. I write books straight through, beginning to end. I let the book unfold as I’m writing. I know who my main character(s) will be, and I keep a running list as new characters are created. These characters tend to reveal themselves as the story progresses. For the most part, I’m never exactly positive where the story is going to go or even how its going to end.

I love this process because I can honestly say I have no idea where the story will end up. I am often surprised at some of the twists and turns my stories end up taking. Its as if I’m on my own journey and I, mostly, enjoy it. I wrote a rough draft of a suspense/murder mystery book many years ago; at the time of writing it I had no idea who the murderer would be. The reveal came to me near the climax of the book and I knew who it had to be and why.

There are times when a story isn’t quite coming together for me. I may not like where its headed, I may be stuck on a certain part, or I just can’t get into a certain character’s head. I try to power though and just keep writing, but sometimes I must put a pin in it. If I really get stuck, I walk away from the book for a while. Sometimes, I put the book away for a long time and work on something completely different.

I really struggled with my current book about the fairy door. The story wasn’t flowing the way I wanted it to, and while I had written some good stuff I was stuck at where to go next. I had to shelf it and move to other things. Then, out of nowhere I had an idea that turned the book around. I can’t go into much detail or I’ll give too much away right, but I’ll revisit this later.

The main goal of the first draft is to write and keep writing until the story is done. This will be my incredibly detailed outline and from here I have something solid to work with.

 

Second Draft:

Once the first draft is done, I let it sit. Sometimes as little as one week, and sometimes as much as one month. Then, I rewrite the entire thing. I use the first draft as my guide, copying the parts I like and reworking the rest. I start this in a brand-new document as if I’m writing for the first time.

After this draft, the story is usually much better and with more detail. Everything flows together well and the parts I may have skimmed through, just to get it written, are fixed. At this point, I’m happy with the story and, if for any reason, I feel the story needs work I do this entire process again until I’m satisfied.

 

First Edit:

Now, this is when things start to get interesting. The first edit is me reading through the draft and make changes. I correct spelling and grammar errors and make sure the story flows well. During this phase, I like to hide in my office with the door closed because I have to read out loud to hear how it sounds. Once I make changes and I’m happy with the story; it’s time to send it out.

 

Outside Editing:

Next, I send my story to two of my faithful critics. They read through the story, point out plot holes, suggest word upgrades, help with sentence structure, and give their overall opinions. Of course, they check for spelling and grammar as well. I have two people I use, family/friends so it doesn’t cost me anything but a few hits to the pride.

 

Second Edit:

Once I have my two manuscripts with edits back, I go through them. I put on my thick skin and read through the suggestions. This is the hardest part for me. This is where the constructive criticism takes place and I have to take it all with a grain of salt. After the initial zing, I can see how changing parts of the story only make it better. With each edit and each book I write, I know my writing improves.

 

I read through all the edits, most of which I accept, but there are a few suggestions I don’t use. I know how I want the story to go and I know my characters well; some suggestions don’t mesh well with either of those things. However, I take all suggestions to heart and think them through. Normally, I find some sentences or paragraphs that need to be reworked based on edits, which I will highlight and take notes for the next edit.

 

Third Edit:

After making suggested edits, I go back and read through the book again. At this point, I work on the areas I highlighted and aim to tighten up the story.

At this point, I am also looking at chapter length, meaning word count. I am currently writing lower middle grade chapter books and they like consistency. They want to know each chapter will be roughly the same length. I have found ten pages per chapter is a good goal; this is ten pages in the completed book not in the Word document. For me, this is roughly 1050 words per chapter give or take: no less than 1020 and no more than 1080.

Getting these numbers to work can be, well, work. Not to mention I’m also looking at my final word count, which for my particular genre is around 10K total words. It can be a chore to get these numbers where I want them to be. It often means a lot of chopping huge chunks of the book. If a sentence or paragraph doesn’t move the story forward, then it must go.

 

2nd Outside Edit:

Once I’m satisfied with the story, it’s time for a professional copy edit. This is where I pay someone to read my book, make changes, correct spelling and grammar, check for inconsistencies, and help make sure the story really works.

Again, this is where I put my ego on the shelf and prepare myself for the “red ink” return. This constructive criticism can be a bit tougher because I am paying someone to be bluntly honest. I remind myself this is all to make the story better.

 

Final edits:

Once I receive the manuscript back from the editor, it’s time to get serious. I review all the suggestions and make the necessary changes. Then, I read through the book as many times as it takes until I’m satisfied with the finished product.

 

From here, I move on to preparing the book for publication, which I will discuss in an upcoming blog series on Self-publishing. This is my basic writing process from idea to final draft.

 

 

Should I Use a Pen Name?

 

One of the top questions budding authors want to know is if they should use a pen name or their actual name. What are the main reasons for using a pen name?

A brief history lesson: Back in the day, or many moons ago, or whatever phrase you like to use when referencing a time long ago, women weren’t “allowed” to write for profit. Therefore, women, being the intelligent humans they are, wrote under male names and made millions. Well, maybe not millions but at least they were able to get their work published and read.

Fast forward to today, and pen names are not as necessary as they once were. So, why do people choose a pen name at all?

1) Common Names

My given name is Michelle (Peterson) Miller. A very common name. We’ve all done a Google search on ourselves…haven’t we? My name brings up pages and pages and still more pages of sites.

New authors face an uphill battle from day one, attempting to get their books in front of readers. If readers can’t find you, how will they know what a fantastic product you have for them?

I knew I wanted to be easy to find, and therefore, a new name was essential.

2) Hard to Pronounce Names

I think my name is pretty simple, Michelle. Still, I can’t tell you how many times I get called ‘Melissa’ or ‘Miranda’ or some other girl name that starts with ‘M.’ I can only imagine life with a more complex name.

Again, new authors face a difficult challenge. We work hard to get our books in front of readers. In turn, we hope our readers not only enjoy our books but recommend them to their friends and family. If your name is too hard to pronounce, those recommendations can get lost in translation, so to speak. “Oh, I read this great book. What was that author’s name? It was something different, Rosalusamontogin, or something like that.”

It’s something to think about when writing your first book. If people can’t remember your name, they may not recommend you or look to find more information about you.

3) Sexism and Racism

I hate to go here, but unfortunately, sexism and racism run deep in the book world. I am part of many author and reader groups; and shudder at some of the things people say. “I never read female crime writers; they don’t know that world.” “Men can never write romance correctly.” “I won’t buy a book by an (ethnic group) author; they aren’t writing for me.”

Writing is a very male-dominated business, believe it or not. There is a reason J.K. Rowlings used initials instead of her first name (hint: it made her gender-neutral). She then chooses a male pen name (Richard Gilbreath) when she moved to suspense/thriller books. Several other famous authors have done the same (Looking at you Nora Roberts/ J.D. Robb). You can read about J.K. Rowlings pen name here.

In Romance, the roles are flipped. Many men will choose a female name to gain recognition in this area. I went the J.K. Rowlings route and chose Mitchel.

4) Writing in different genres

Some writers love to bounce from genre to genre. I get it; if you have a story to tell, don’t let the boundaries of genre stop you. Keep in mind, if you create a following in Romance and then jump to Horror, you may lose part of your audience.  Likewise, if you get your start writing children’s books and switch to romance, there may be a few angry parents.

5) Anonymity

Perhaps you are writing more as a hobby. You want to test the waters, see if you can finish a book, try to publish on your own, and you just aren’t ready to share this part of your world with anyone. Some people simply want to keep their private lives separate from their public author persona. It can be fun to play an author role and hang that hat at the end of a busy day.

Conclusion:

There are many reasons why someone may want to use a pen name. The question remains, Should I use a pen name? The only person who can answer that question is you. At the end of the day, it’s up to you.