Every so often, I get a blast of laziness and I just don’t feel like writing. When that happens, the words don’t flow with ease, and I either struggle on or don’t write at all. Either is a reasonable response to the feeling. While I do try to write something every day, some days it just doesn’t happen. Don’t get me wrong, I hate those days. I also accept that they happen. I usually struggle on, producing garbage text. Every so often, though, I take a break. I write nothing on those days. By great fortune, they don’t happen that often.
That’s OK. I don’t have to write everyday and it is even good to take a day off from writing. Of course, if you are writing to a deadline, you might be in trouble. For the most part, taking a break from writing can help you improve your writing. Forcing it just means you have more to rewrite later. That said, if you can, don’t write at all. Take that break. Burnout is a real thing.
To prevent it, you may need to take a break. Go for a walk. Read a book. Watch TV. If you feel you must be productive, do chores. The point is your unconscious mind is busy and you need to take a break. So take it. Do something else and come back to your writing later. When you do, the writing is usually easier to do and the resulting text is less prone to extensive revision. Let your mind relax and not do too much on those days. Let the writing go. That may be hard for you to do, but it will make you a better writer when you go back to writing.
I say that often taking a break like that can lead you to better writing because it’s true. That’s regardless of whether your break ends on the following day or even the same day. You can get back to writing after a break and feel more like you can do whatever you want to. Remember, you aren’t stopping, you’re pausing. Sometimes that’s all you need to do. Stop. Rest. Then get back to it. You can take an hour or two. Or, you can take the whole day. Whatever fits your schedule and writing style.
The writing is the important thing. Taking a break doesn’t mean that you will never write again. Keep that in mind. So if you don’t feel like writing, don’t. Take a break. Stop. Don’t do it. Just kick back, relax and let your unconscious mind take the task and work out what you need to do to get the words out. You will find that you do better for taking a little break.
I am not one who is comfortable talking about myself but here goes. I enjoy writing, family history, and reading. I decided to do this blog because I wanted to try something new. I decided to make it a weekly blog because I wasn't sure that I could keep up with a daily one, and monthly seemed like I was writing a magazine. I think I did ok with my choices. You'll notice that there are not a lot of graphics on my site. That's because there are graphics plastered everywhere on the Internet and those sites sometimes take forever to load. This blog is a place where you can kick back, relax and be ready to be amused. At least I hope I willbamuse you. This blog is on a variety of subjects from my ficitional cat agency, the FFL, which is monthly, to instructional blogs to editorials, which are my opinions only. I admit that I don't know everything and could be wrong -- I frequently am. Now, stop reading about me and read what I have to say!
Check out my novel, The Accidental Colony — It's the story of a group of scientists fighting for survival.
FCIS: The Tricolor Killer is now available on Smashwords
Pebblepup's Writing Den 
Leave a Reply