I’m about to embark on a treacherous adventure – one fraught with numerous areas of danger and opportunity for failure. Will I come out the other side triumphant – or not?
I’m instituting a Day of Rest.
I know it sounds melodramatic (well, I am a fiction author, after all), but I really am worried this might be something I can’t stick to.
You see, over the past year, I’ve learned something about myself: I’m a workaholic. I will spend all day on the weekend in front of a computer – the sad thing is, I’m not always writing. As an author, there is always a push to do more in terms of promotion, outreach, and yes, getting more books on the shelves – yesterday, if not sooner.
Don’t get me wrong. As an introvert, I’m surprised by how much I enjoy interacting with readers online. Planning special events is so much fun. Heck, even just thinking of things to make you smile, well, makes me smile. But an author’s online presence today can be time-consuming. Add in an Evil Day Job, husband, kids, and cats – not to mention all the characters clamoring for attention in my head… Exhausting.
The perfectionist in me won’t let me stop. I’m afraid if I do, I’ll never succeed. I’m also a little afraid that if I ever do stop, I won’t be able to start again.
There’s a problem, though. I’ll let you in on an artistic secret: the busier an author is, the more stress and concern on an author’s mind, and those characters?
They Go Silent.
It’s an author’s worst nightmare. One I’ve experienced too often lately. Yes, I can push through and get stories to work – but why do that when I can prevent it in the first place?
Sounds easy, right? But I know myself too well. The siren call of the To Do list is loud, all encompassing sometimes. I’ll have to build my resistance muscles. So if you don’t hear from me on a Sunday, you’ll know why.
Do you enforce a regular day of rest? What usually gets in your way? What do you do to “rest” and rejuvenate?
Dani
No comment to “A Day of Rest”
authorangelachristinaarcher - February 16, 2015
I start out thinking I’m going to take a day off, but then I start feeling guilty and all the internal deadlines start going off in my head and I end up, half way through the day, jumping into my task list. It’s a problem I hope to rectify someday. 🙂
Dani Wade - February 16, 2015
Angela, I feel you! I have found I have to be very careful of the ‘just one small thing’ trap. I’ll think I need to send 1 email and 2 hours later…
It’s a process to wean myself from workaholic tendencies, but I can already see a difference. It’s like exercise, that little bit of encouragement makes it that much easier. And I’ll admit, I spend time thinking about my story on that day. But since I have no pressure to write, I can ‘play’ with it-and that’s the creative space I need. 😉