Hope everyone had a good summer! Now that fall is upon us I’m definitely feeling the fall productive energy coming from the many years I spent in school. January has never felt like the time for me to set goals but for those of us whose bodies are turned to both the school calendar and the changing of the seasons, I feel like the week after Labor Day is a great time. So I encourage everyone to join me and rethink the ways you’ve been living and working as we continue to live our writing lives. Here are a few of my resolutions for the new school year:
Rethink your routine. The changing of the seasons is always a great time to make adjustments to your routine. Recently, one major adjustment I’ve made has been going from a five-day workweek and two-day weekend to a four-day workweek and three-day weekend, which works a lot better for me in terms of how my mind and body recharge; it also helps that I don’t have a full-time job so I can set these priorities myself. Thinking of my writing as optional three days of the week and prioritizing other things during those days actually leaves me feeling a lot more enthusiastic about tackling parts of the writing process I don’t enjoy as much.
Don’t forget to keep reading because it feeds the work of writing. This is something I have a tendency to forget especially when I’m in the throes of a first draft (as I am now), but reading books that are relevant to your work can not only inspire you but also give you tools for resolving issues you’re having with your own writing. There are writers who are concerned about being too affected by reading and I think this is valid in the latter stages of a project, but I’ve learned over time not to get scared over my work shifting in first draft while I’m being influenced by other books. That’s why it’s called a first draft!
Do other things you enjoy that can relax you and also affect your work positively. It’s well known that Nabokov was an avid butterfly enthusiast and Jamaica Kincaid loves gardening; it’s really important to find and cultivate other activities that will calm you and nourish your writing. For a long time my major activity in this regard was dance, but since moving to the woods and not being able to take dance classes, I’ve turned to painting and music as sources of calm and inspiration.
If you have your own writing resolutions and wanna talk about them, come to the Facebook group and let’s discuss (argh I know FB but that’s where we’ve ended up congregating). The volunteers and I are busy planning our fall/winter workshop season as we speak so watch out for that too!
Talk soon,
M.