When I make the time to write, I’m always surprised to remember how much I enjoy it. It’s strange to think that something we try so hard to avoid can be so pleasurable. The most enjoyable part for me is gaining the continuity that a focused period of writing can bring. For two or three weeks over the holiday break was lucky to be able to really hunker down into a solid routine with no other distractions. As I’m getting close to final stages of the writing I had all those fiddly bits you leave to the last, to fill in. The bits that say ‘more here, check these dates, move this bit, more research, need more detail.’ Surrounded by all my relevant books, with google at hand, I was able to track down stories, research different bits, clarify details and follow different lines of thought.
When you eat, sleep and dream your work, connections happen, breakthroughs even, as the image map of your story fills your consciousness. (Here are some tips from Kellie McGann to help you get there!)
But what to do when you lose the impetus, or find yourself putting your writing on the back burner?
Answer: Ask yourself why write, why do it? Why do you love it/hate it?
Take a couple of pages to answer these Qs, writing without stopping for ten mins. Have a read through, then in your diary or planner set your writing timetable for the next month, three months, 6 months.
Then have a look at this article from Brain Pickings for some inspiration on managing your creative routine.
Go back to your planner again and see if you can timetable a few full focus writing periods during the year. A long weekend, a five day week, a fortnight away on a self guided retreat…
Or come and join us
April 2-8, 2019 — Bali Writer’s Residency.Total focus on your writing project with in house mentoring and peer feedback.
May 25 – June 1, 2019 – Sensing Italy. A creative immersion in an Italian village in the Le Marche region, near Tuscany.
Oct 6-12, 2019 – Haiku Walking in Japan, a pilgrimage along the ancient Kumano Kodo trail.
March 1-15, 2020 – Moroccan Caravan A creative adventure into the heart of Moroccan culture. Tangier, Chefchaouen, Fes, Tissardmine.
www.writersjourney.com.au
