I write about 20 to 30 hours a week. The dedicated time helps me identify as a writer. You may know the phrase, whatever you spend time doing, that’s what you are. I also own a gardening business, which makes me a gardener. That business keeps me busy most days but I take weekends off. On the weekends, I do household chores and tend my own garden and spend time with my family and pets. But I’ve noticed a problem. When I’m away from writing for just a few days, sometimes only two, it’s difficult to get back into the rhythm of writing time.
Monday Mornings
Monday mornings are the worst. I feel lost. It’s like I’ve floated to the surface of my imagination during the weekend. I’ve come up into bright clear waters where I can see sunlight. During my creative writing time, I swim deep down in my imagination, in deep murky water where the story happens. It’s a silly metaphor I can’t escape. After I’ve surfaced for the weekend, submerging myself requires a settling into quiet I sometimes procrastinate. That process of getting into the silence and solitude is difficult. I want to move. I want to stay alert and in the exterior moment. Traveling into a mute dreamy place requires discipline and effort.
Two Choices
I’ve learned to do one of two things. I either force myself to sit and work or I decide the morning is for other tasks. When I work, I realize later my restlessness was only procrastination. It was sabotaging me. My fears made me reluctant to go on. When I don’t work, I try to make the most of the time. Do the laundry, the bills, the errands, that do need to get done. Often when I do life errands, I find I miss the writing time and by lunch I’m back in my chair.
Does you find it difficult to get back in the rhythm of writing after not writing for a few days? If so, do you have a method to get into the rhythm? If so, let me know in the comments below.
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