I keep reading about how it is good to build up a profile, write a blog, read blogs, read books, and then of course there is the time to write.
I also have to do things like walk the dog, work, make supper, be nice to husband who is supporting me though this whole being a writer stuff. Help! How do I balance my time?
Treat your husband like s**t. Then on your acknowledgements page you finish off with "But of course my biggest thanks go to my long-suffering husband, without whose selfless love and support I could NEVER have done this."
Seems to be standard practice.
This is one of the most difficult things for people when they're starting up as a writer. Time always seems like it is in short supply.
What I tell people to do is to write down everything they do in a normal day from the time they get up to the time they go to bed. Be honest and literally write down every minute of that time. 45 minutes of TV. 1 hour chatting with husband. Make sure every second is accounted for.
Then look at it and prioritise everything. Gotta work to pay the bills. Gotta cook supper or you will starve. Gotta be nice to husband or he may not be so willing to indulge this whole writer business. But that TV time can probably go, right? Maybe cut it down to your favourite show or simply cut it down to half an hour a night. Could hubby cook dinner one or two nights a week, freeing you up to do your thing?
Be brutal and be honest. If you still can't find time, then look at your lunch break. Could you sneak in twenty minutes of writing or reading then? Could you use your commute to listen to an audiobook? If you use public transport, is there a way you could write then? Could you even get up half an hour early before everyone else is awake to get a few hundred words down?
I've never met anyone who couldn't look at their schedule and say "Actually, I bet there is time. I just didn't realize it." It just takes a few minutes of being honest with yourself and deciding what you can prioritise your writing over.