The other day I did a blog over at the Savvy Authors about Dealing with the Day Job and one of the things I mentioned was finding a place and time for your writing as well as how to recharge. I like to call it finding your creative center because it’s one of the most important things you can do as a writer or any other kind of artist for that matter.
For me, being near the shore energizes me. Maybe it’s because I’m a Pisces, but there is something about the ocean and beach that I find invigorating. When I head down the shore, I know I am going to get a mess of writing done as well as a spiritual uplift.
Now I know I am luckier than some that I can pick up and take the hour, or two hour or three hour (there is a reason why it’s called the Garden State PARKway) trip down the shore. But even if you can’t get away, you should try to carve out a place and time where you can work more effectively and also a way to recharge when you’ve emptied your brain of all thoughts and need a break.
When I’m not down the shore, I have my office at home and I’ve filled it with things that I love. Family photos, useful books, my keeper and TBR collection of novels, candles, DVDs of my favorite movies and television shows as well as a comfy couch, sweater and comforter since I don’t like working at a desk when I write.
Even if all you can do is carve out a small space down in the basement next to the washer and dryer, make it your own. Surround it with things that you love and will make you feel creative.
Also find a time during which you feel most creative. As I mentioned in that earlier blog, I discovered I was a morning person. My most creative time is from around 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and I take advantage of those early hours for some truly peaceful time because there are very few crazy people up at 5 a.m., especially down the shore!
What about when you hit a block? Well, a long shower or walk work best for me. There is something about those activities where you don’t have to be thinking about doing something and can just think that help me work through problems in the story line or visualize the next scene I want to write.
I hope you found this Tuesday Tip helpful! Good luck with the writing.
Okay, my daughter thinks I’m crazy, but I think Ashton Kutcher is really cute. With the release of his new movie KILLERS this weekend, I figured he would be an appropriate Guilty Pleasures Monday.
We seem to have shot straight from winter to summer in New York City, going from nights in the thirties to days in the eighties overnight.
This Wicked Wednesday is a blast from the past, but one of my favorites – TEMPTATION CALLS. It’s also the story that launched several other novels, namely, DEVOTION CALLS, BLOOD CALLS and FURY CALLS. All the characters in those novels first appeared in TEMPTATION CALLS.