You would think that merely saying "I am working" would be enough to convince a loved one to leave you alone. Unfortunately, in this 9-5, highly consumable, get up and go society, if you are at home, then you can't possibly be busy. Therefore you become the "go-to-guy" for whatever anyone you know needs.

Usually I am pretty good at keeping people at a arms distance to allow me to work... not to mention homeschool my kids. However, this past week has been utterly unproductive. You see, my in-laws just moved into town. They stayed with us until their house closed, and they also have been visiting on and off for the past 6 months, while house shopping and preparing to move. So, they see me on the computer... A LOT. Yet, they think I am idly surfing the net. No one sees a problem with interrupting me mid thought. No one sees a problem with asking me to run errands. The words "I'm working" have no effect. I need new ignoring tactics.

I did not mind however, making numerous phone calls and driving around this week, as they are getting settled and I truly want to help. I do have to remember however to set a time limit. Yesterday, I thought I could help out and then come home and work into the night. Writers can be flexible with their schedules, right? Wrong? I fell asleep mid sentence. For me, writing must be done in the morning. I haven't the ability to write in the evening, let alone write well.

I am saying this to say, be strong writers. Set boundaries, set your hours, and don't let others intrude on your income. After all, you don't go to their jobs and ask them to run errands for you, do you?