Hey Guys!
I’m excited to say that this will be my first post as part of Thursday’s Children, an awesome weekly blog hop. Check out the linky at the bottom of this page to see posts by other participants, and feel free to check out how you can participate by visiting Rhiann Wynn-Nolet’s website!
Now, down to business….
A few months back, I wrote a post about ‘unplugging’ from technology for the sake of your health, but recently I’ve been thinking about unplugging for the sake of creativity.
Like most writers, I work a full time job, then I return home and work for another 4-6 hours–be it on my book, critiquing for friends, editing my client’s work, or simply doing chores around the house (confession: the boyfriend does a ton of chores b/c I am such a fiend about writing in the evenings).
But it doesn’t stop there. When I’m not at home or at work, I’m often guilty of reading twitter and blogs on my phone, especially those that pertain to writing/reading. There’s so much to read, so much to learn…I want to know it all!
But what if this overzealous dedication is counterproductive? What if all it’s making me miss out on the very thing that will make me a great writer—you know, LIVING MY LIFE? Because after all, who wants to read a book written by someone who doesn’t know about anything except, well, writing books?
So, I’m going to rededicate myself to unplugging. To relaxing. Here’s my plan:
- I’m going to get outside more: take walks, go on hikes, ride my bike to the beach.
- Visit friends in my area
- Try out complicated recipes using my tagine
- Explore my city. First up: the Watts Towers.
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Sure, I’ll miss out on some writing time and some blog posts, but I have a feeling that taking time away might improve my focus and creativity during those times I am writing. I may even find a whole new brand of inspiration out there, one that comes from the outside world.
Now, it’s your turn. Are you overworked and underplayed? Do you have to force yourself to unplug once in a while? What do you do to rejuvenate yourself? Let me know in the comments!
Lauren
“Tomorrow may be hell, but today was a good writing day, and on the good writing days nothing else matters.”
― Neil Gaiman
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THURSDAYS CHILDREN
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I actually find that the best way to jumpstart my creativity is to take a day of not doing “work” (in my case dissertation writing, reading critical theory, normal humanities grad student stuff) and just read fiction. Tangentially related to what I am working on is best — so if I’m writing about modernism, read something from a different author around the same time that I never read, if I’m writing about zombies, read a different kind of horror/sci fi story, etc.
I don’t think being too plugged in is so much a problem for me so much as being too distracted: sometimes when we check facebook or twitter 5x or 10x an hour, it’s not really that we’re “too plugged in” but more “too zoned out,” you know?
For me it’s all about self control (aka my lack of it… hence writing this comment and reading this blogpost while I am dissertating).
Well, back to the grind. Thoughtful post, good luck writing!
I will def buy a copy when the book comes out — but I expect to get it signed… unless it’s an ebook, in which case I expect to get my kindle signed!
Ahhh Twitter. My best-loved arch nemesis. So useful, so distracting. I curse thee!
But yeah…I feel you. And hey! Can I sign your kindle even if it *is* printed? 😉
You’re so right that we need to live in the real world, not just the book world, in order to write. Going unplugged is HARD though.
I often don’t know how to unplug and relax. It took me a long time to learn. One way was, believe it or not, plugging my phone in in my office instead of my bedroom. Now when I wake up, the first thing i check isn’t my phone. I sit and think about what dream I had, and it inspires me to write.
Go to the beach and write! I bet that would be fabulous for your creativity. Someone also recommended writing on paper to get away from the screen.
the phone thing is a good idea. i’m not actually looking for a new place to write so much as time…spent not writing/reading/researching. Working at the beach is totally the kind of thing I’d love, though!
I agree completely!
I try not to spend too much time on the internet or blogs — except for email and Thursday’s Children, of course…
It’s sad, but I’m only ever able to generate new ideas and think in a new way when I’m unplugged. It’s a chance to think about nothing in particular, let my mind wander. I’ll often go camping with my family for a week during the summer and bring a blank notebook with me. By the time the week’s over, I have enough story ideas to last the year!
Thanks for sharing and hope to see you next week 🙂
I need to remember to unplug more often. Unfortunately the day job requires a lot of plugged in time and I don’t always remember to unplug.