Christine Cohen

1. You are a wife, mother, author, and MFA student– you wear so many hats! What does a typical day look like for you and your family?

I’d have to reach back to early March to remember what typical days looked like! My kids are in pre-school, first, and third grade at a classical Christian school in town, so two mornings a week (when my youngest is in school), I have a three-hour chunk of time to myself. This is a new thing for me: I’ve been a stay-at-home mom since my oldest was born in 2010, so it’s strange to suddenly have a window of time that I can fill however I want. Other than that free time, most of my day is spent doing the typical house-running activities: cooking, cleaning, grocery-shopping, going to basketball games, helping with homework, etc. I get my schoolwork and writing work done on the fringes of my everyday routine. Sometimes I take my son to an indoor play area, and I can get in several hours of answering emails, doing marketing, and writing. 

2. You have a window of time to write. How will that play out? Do you have a structured routine, does it vary based on circumstance, or do you prefer a more flexible approach?

Life goes in seasons, but when the kids are in school, I hold to a very strict schedule of working while they’re away. I don’t do the laundry, I don’t get together with friends, I usually go to a coffee shop (because if I’m home, I’ll get distracted!), order a latte, pop in my headphones and get to work. That’s about as structured as I get! Summers are complete wild cards and relatively unproductive for me. I sometimes sneak in thirty minutes of homework if the kids are all in the backyard playing, or a fifteen minute reading break while they’re watching something. But I approach summers expecting to get very little done, and then I’m always pleasantly surprised when things are accomplished. Additionally, because I’m in year two of an MFA program, I frequently work in the evenings after the kids are in bed. It’s not my ideal time (I’d rather hang out with my husband!) but this is just a season, and if I want to graduate, I have to work late! 

3. In your most full or challenging seasons, how have you still managed to create?

I spend a lot of time thinking about priorities. How do I order all these good things in my life? A hundred different people might answer this a hundred different ways, but for me it always comes back to obedience. I am a Christian first, then a wife and mother, and then a creative. So I make sure that I am fulfilling my priorities as a Christian (going to church, reading my Bible, praying, ministering to others), then as a wife and mother (my husband and kids!), and then as a writer. But within those categories, there can be a lot of variance. In some of the harder seasons (like this one!) we do a lot less hospitality so that I can meet my writing deadlines. My house is a lot messier when I have edits due. I have learned to let things go that I really love (like a clean house), so that I can write. I don’t watch much tv or do other extracurriculars like sewing or knitting or playing music: writing is my one big creative thing! But I do frequently check in with my family to see how they think this wild juggling act is going, because I never want anyone to feel like I’ve sacrificed them or their needs for my writing. I think the idea of the reclusive, self-indulgent writer is dangerous and unhealthy.

4. How are you seeing the fruit of your creative work blooming now from seeds that you planted long ago?

I started writing in earnest in 2011 when my youngest was a baby and slept four hours a day. I wrote an entire novel during her first year of life, and promptly threw it away (trust me, it was awful). I wrote another novel when my second child was doing some epic baby naps (and my first still napped), and I also threw that one away. It was helpful as practice, but it wasn’t good enough yet. I wrote The Winter King when I was pregnant with my third, in November 2014. And even though I finally felt that book had a chance, it still wasn’t published until November of 2019! All that to say, it took eight years and many, many hours of writing before I held a book in my hands. Writing is (usually) not a quick or easy path; it’s many hours spent by yourself at a desk with your sleeves rolled up and sweat on your brow. But it does feel like a snowball: all those years of practicing and putting myself out there and fighting through obstacles is starting to pay off, and I’ve had a lot of opportunities come up now that I’ve been at this so long. I’m glad I didn’t know back in 2011 how long it would take!

As a side note, if you want to be a great writer, you need to be a great reader. This can be so hard when you have littles, but my husband and I got in the habit of reading before bed many years ago, and now it’s a crucial part of our evening routine. Even if you only read for twenty minutes (think how often we aimlessly scroll on our phones for twenty minutes!), you can make it through so many books. And you will never regret filling your mind (and your writing tool-belt) with great stories.

5. What inspires you: as a wife, mom, and artist?

This is kind of a funny one, but for mom/wife inspiration, I highly recommend that young moms read the biographies of missionary women, or homesteading women, or spend time talking with older Christian mothers (whose kids are out of the house). We are doing very important, kingdom-building work, but sometimes it can be SO hard to see the forest because of the trees. Biographies give us some much-needed perspective as to how other women dealt with incredibly hard circumstances with great faith and courage. And older mothers have a lot of great perspective as to what things are really important when it comes to raising littles.

As far as being an artist, I am a complete nerd and I love reading all the how-to books. One of my favorites is actually Stephen King’s book “On Writing.” The first half is auto-biographical and I find it so inspiring every time I read it. If I’m doing a writing sprint and am struggling to get in the zone, I’ll pick up a book that I read recently and absolutely loved, and read a few paragraphs out loud. I always pick authors whose writing is joyful, who clearly love the craft, and are bursting with desire to share that love with their readers. It helps get my brain into the writing groove, and also reminds me why I write.

6. Do you have any favorite resources that you’d recommend to fellow creatives?

When I was first starting out, I listened to a podcast called PubCrawl that I found immensely helpful when it came to understanding the publishing industry.

For anyone interested in craft books, two of my favorites are Into the Woods by John Yorke (for big picture) and Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Steven Pinker (for line by line pointers).

Also, I highly recommend you join a writing critique group or find a few solid writing partners that you can swap manuscripts with. When you’re looking for a critique partner, find someone who reads/knows/possibly writes your genre. Someone who knows how to give constructive criticism. And someone who you feel you can help as well. If you write for children, look up SCBWI and consider joining it, it’s a wealth of opportunities and information!

7. Do you have a scripture, word, or mantra that guides your work?

I have a bracelet that says ONE WORD AT A TIME, and I wear it often, particularly when I’m staring down a daunting pile of revisions. Some days the work load can seem unfeasible, and then I remind myself that panic doesn’t solve any problems (it’s a line I stole from one of my characters in The Winter King), and that the only way to finish these edits is to start them. Write that first word, and then the next. Don’t put it off until some nebulous time when you think you’ll feel more in the mood to climb that mountain, just take the first step.

8. How do you believe motherhood and creative work complement one another?

Mothers (all women, really!) are uniquely gifted at beautifying things. We paint the walls of our houses, buy lovely clothes for our families, cook delicious meals, browse Marshall’s for decorations, spend time on Pinterest, the list goes on. We are deeply and inherently creative, and what I love so much about mothers is how differently creative we are. Some of my friends are amazing sewers, but I can hardly thread a bobbin. Others are incredible bakers or skilled at putting together outfits. I think we can all find creative outlets inside the role of motherhood. Children love to hear stories, and since writing is one of my outlets, I don’t just write novels for them to read, I tell them bedtime stories and I write them letters from their tooth fairy and I spin quick, funny yarns at the dinner table. I don’t like to think of motherhood and creativity as separate boxes; they’re much more like overlapping spheres.

9. Have you ever wanted to throw in the towel and quit being an artist? How did you fight past that feeling?

So many times! Especially when I was querying The Winter King. One thing I did was, if I received a particularly kind rejection, I’d copy the compliments out and put them in a separate word document. Or if I received great feedback from a beta reader, I’d do the same. Then if I was feeling down, I would read these notes of encouragement and they would remind me that I can write. I still do this sometimes with kind reviews of The Winter King. Sometimes all you can see when you look at a manuscript are its faults, but other people are much more willing and able to forgive those slights, and their encouragement can help you get back on the horse. 

10. If you could tell moms who long to create as they raise little ones a word of advice or encouragement, what would it be?

First off, remember that life goes in phases. There were times when I had to stop writing almost completely, and that was okay. There were times when my writing window was only a few hours a week. You can still write a novel that way, it just takes longer! Don’t think of those hours away from the computer as wasted time. So much of storytelling takes place in your head, as you get to know your characters, work through sticky plot issues, and muse over backstories. Throw yourself joyfully into the everyday work that’s required of you, and then when you do get a chance to sit down at your desk and work, take full advantage of it! Don’t check Facebook or scroll Pinterest, guard your chunk of time fiercely. And remember that storytelling is a lifelong skill. There’s no timestamp on creativity. You’ll have your whole life to tell stories, and if you are investing in your husband, your little ones, your neighbors and community, then you are doing a good work. And those experiences will make your stories even richer. 

Connect with Christine:

Instagram // Facebook // Website

You can buy Christine’s book on Amazon or you can order a signed copy here.