Writing Buddies: Being Held Accountable.

A couple of months ago I made an important decision.  What I needed was a good kick in the pants to commit myself to writing.  The best way I knew of was to find myself an accountability buddy and who better for that role than my own husband?

When I first told my husband of my writing ambitions, he thought it was a good idea and was eager to support me, but I let him down.  I quit my job and for twelve months I wrote without having anything published.  I eventually went back to work on a casual basis until I became pregnant with my first child.  Years later, my writing became sporadic, only seeing the bottom of drawers rather than the light of day.  Clearly I was not taking my writing seriously.

In recent years, I have made a more determined effort.  My husband recently reminded me of the small successes I have made, reminding me also that others have given positive comments on my writing; in his own way trying to boost my confidence to keep going.  And it is his support, more than anybody else that I rely on.  He was the first person I trusted to tell about my writing, without feeling ashamed of having that ambition.  He was the very first to encourage me every step of the way.  My husband is prepared to be the sole bread winner while I try to make a success out of writing.  I owe it to him to persevere.

Of-course, now that he is my accountability buddy, he believes I need to show him my writing at the end of every day.  I tell him that it doesn’t always work that way.  Some days he needs to expect that I have been busy planning, thinking or researching in order to write.  I like to hear how his day has been at work; it’s only natural that he gets to hear about mine, no matter how boring it may sound.

Who is your accountability buddy?  Do you have the support of somebody you can trust?