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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/29365
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/29365
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

First of all I'm not a doctor and good luck with your schizoaffective disorder. I cannot imagine the extent of its effect over your life; that's something you have to judge by yourself.

But from what you write, it seems you have already made progress in other areas of your life - e.g. quitting drinking and smoking, better dealing with your job and such - despite your mental illness. Why would writing should be any different? So my answer is definitely yes, at least to the main question.

Going over the others:

**How much time should I dedicate to writing during the week?**

Up to you, but from what I heard, a good practice is to struggle and write something - anything - everyday, just to keep an habit. So let's say, half an hour a day? Someone suggests counting up the number of words you write rather than the time you spend writing them, but in the end is quite the same. You have to keep your gears running. The point is making an habit out of it. You'll find tons of answers on this question on the site, you'll just have to look around.

**How can I stay motivated, and stick to my goal?**

I'm not the best counselor on this, since I'm struggling with the same issue. I'd say: try to break your goal into smaller pieces - that are more easily achievable. "I want a novel done" seems quite a far-away target, and it takes a lot of time to get it done. If you manage to write, let's say, one or two pages a day, you'll just be one or two pages closer to your goal... and novels can have hundreds of pages. Not really reassuring, is it?

Think differently. What gets me going is, rather, "I want to write this scene" or "I want to make those characters meet, and do something". It might be poor outlining, but I tend to build my stories around characters and events. I know in advance most of the important stuff that is going to happen and I usually fill in the blanks between one "important scene" and the other.

The good part of this is that you can set some more reachable milestones: in my opinion, it's more rewarding. You'll go sleeping thinking "Ah, finally I made that thing happen. I think it played out well, now, up to the next one".

**Is it possible to write and have a mental illness?**

Imho, yes. As I said.

**How can I stay focused, and not want to write something else even a chapter or two into it?**

Well, we already talk about two problems here: the fact that you cannot write consistently and the fact you can't seem to finish a novel. I'd say it's better to address them one at a time: first, start following a writing routine until "it works". _Then_ worry about keeping faithful to a story.

From a personal point of view, if you're having problems with writing in general, worrying about writing a novel doesn't help much. If you're trying to follow a daily routine, but can't seem to progress on your novel, just write something else and call it a day. Sure, the con is that your novel won't get any further, but at least you have written something, instead of looking at a blank page in guilt.

**is writing as a career possible for me?**

Again, honestly: why not?

Original score: 5