Welcome back to another installment of Random Things That Have Improved My Life! This time, it’s the stuff that has really helped my writerly life.
I’m not talking about stuff that’s helped my career or honed my prose necessarily, but I am talking about stuff that all in all, makes me feel more immersed in the craft.
- Taking more chances on social media to make real connections: I followed a bunch of my favorite authors on Instagram and a few followed me back! We started chatting, I asked for writing advice, and a year later, we had an amazing night out drinking martinis and closing out a fancy restaurant in SF. All because I took a chance and engaged authentically!
- Figuring out how to write in my 5 – 9 PM time. This baby ain’t quitting her day job yet. Which means M-F, I write 9-5 at my copywriting job, then I come home and write novel stuff from 5-9 PM (with varying regularity). But the writing time wasn’t the most important thing for this development: I needed to figure out what I needed to do in order to be able to write. So I experimented, trying to figure out how to refresh my brain after work, nourish my body, then transition into creative work. Does working out right after work help my creativity? Or does it tire me out? Does writing in the same clothes I wore to work hinder or help me? It truly was just testing things out and checking in to see how it feels and whether or not it helped me get into the writing flow.
Taking the time to experiment has made a HUGE difference in my life. Bigger blog article about it coming soon tbh. - Separate Chrome accounts for separate life aspects. They also each have their own colorful display! It helps me “transition” into different modes:
- One Chrome account for writing
- One for my job
- One for day-to-day life, like online shopping and screaming at the news
- Removing access to my writerly email from my phone. Especially when I’m waiting for publishing news. Otherwise, I kid you not, my thumb gets cramped from all the times I refresh my inbox.
- Inspiration-on-the-go notebook. Sometimes the muse will pounce on me when I’m out in the world but I HATE writing creative things on my phone. So I have a slim for-creativity-ONLY notebook that I can slip into any purse (plus a pen). To preserve the sanctity of its pages, I don’t use it for grocery lists or anything else. It’s been so nice to have.
- Take time to be in the story…without writing. Yes, my biggest takeaway is to actually spend time not writing to help my stories. Because thinking about a book and writing a book can sometimes (and should!) be two different activities. It’s spending time in the world of the story or with the characters and discovering it, letting your imagination explore without a word document glaring at you.
- Knit and think about a plot hole
- Character arc and watercolors
- Sitting on a stationary bike and adding songs to character playlists.
- Or even not thinking of the book at all and doing something creative that feels good!
I’m not good at any of these other creative pastimes, by the by. There’s a few stitches of my current knitting project that are purled instead of knit and I have no intention of fixing it. But that’s the point! There’s no pressure that my simple scarf is going to cause a cataclysmic style event at Paris Fashion Week. Easing some of that inherent pressure off the brain lets my creativity breathe.
And that’s what I got for now! Tune in next time for another installment of Random Things That Have Improved My Life!