Sunday, July 29, 2012

Anything BUT Writing


Sometimes, the best way to write, is to not to. (Where did I hear that saying? A child I think).

I've been knee-deep in revising, and to be honest, it's become tiring. One moment I'm hopeful and excited, seeing how far I've come and how much I enjoy my story. And then the next moment I notice how far I've still to go and I want to just stand up in a huff and throw in the towel. This roller-coaster of emotions makes for a frustrating writing atmosphere. And then you add in the fact that my kids are on summer break and despite their ages, still feel the need to follow me around the house (any room I choose to write in), and then fight with each other right beside me.

That's when, yesterday, I decided to make the best decision for my current crazy state of mind, and for my writing. I decided not to write. No, I went outside and did yard work. My hubby was mowing the lawn, so I figured, why not? I pulled weeds, then watered the plants. It took hours. Hours of quiet. Hours of peace. Hours of time to think.


And when my kids followed me to the yard, I welcomed them and allowed them to chat my ear off as much as they wanted. As long as they were pulling weeds beside me. My oldest wanted nothing to do with dirty hands. And my youngest gladly helped for about twenty minutes or so, told me she was going to take a break, and then never came back out. :) 


I didn't discover any plot revelations. My mind hadn't come up with any amazing one-liners I could add into the dialog. But, for some reason, that physical activity coupled with peaceful nature (even if I WAS killing the weedy part of nature) gave me the gusto I needed to write. 


Do you find that to be true for yourself? Does a little break from writing, to do something physical, surge your writing ability? 


Here's more pictures of the finished yard work. Except the back yard. It still needs a weed hunt. 




 My dog follows me everywhere too, but she doesn't fight with the kids, so I let her stay by my side. :) And yes, that statue is headless. My sisters swear that I got tired of the little girl statue staring at me with her beady little white eyes so I chopped her head off. No. It was that way when we bought the house. 

5 comments:

  1. Your yard looks fab. Wasn't it a beautiful weekend? I hope we have more before the rain comes back.

    I agree that sometimes we need to not write, which for me, gives me time to THINK about my writing. :)

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    1. Yes it was LOVELY a weekend! There's a thick cloud layer today, but I'll accept it. :)

      Exactly. So many authors have suggested stepping away from your work every now and again to gain new perspective, to think, or just to bask in real life for a bit. ;)

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  2. Great yard!

    I find that I 'get more done' when it comes to writing when I'm not writing, sometimes. I think about things, have conversations with my characters (yup, that sounds creepy, but I'm sure you understand ;)) and then when I sit down, it's basically all ready written.

    I agree, breaks are great.

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  3. I have to take breaks or I'd never write. Not only do I just feel better when I do, but my best ideas tend to come when I'm taking a break.

    The headless statue cracks me up. I'm sure there's a great story in there somewhere.

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  4. I'm always taking breaks when writing, 'cause it seems like the less you're focused on a specific book, the more revelations and ideas that come for it! I never do something as strenuous as yard work during my breaks--very impressive, btw!--but I do like to work on artwork or cross-stitch. They fuel other creative parts of me. :)

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