Writers-Step Off the Merry-Go-Round
Benefits Abound!
Merry-Go-Rounds are fun, aren’t they? As children we loved the bright colors, the music and riding those wild horses!
We look back fondly on those long ago times. Yet, as adults, we find ourselves on a different kind of merry-go-round. We work, eat, sleep and do it all over again the next day…and the next.
As a writer, you may find yourself on a merry-go-round in your writing life. In addition to day-to-day living, writing on Medium keeps us busy. Yet you also may be writing on Substack, have a Facebook account, an email list, LinkedIn and more. Even the search for new places to submit your writing takes time and energy as does writing a book.
We are busy! Then we keep adding to all of the exciting things there are to do. Before we know it, we are on a merry-go-round in our writing lives as we are in our personal lives. We find that we can’t get off as it all goes round and round faster and faster.
We are unable to STOP for some rest and peace.
For those of us writers who have discovered medium.com, the merry-go-round is so much fun! We write, we post our writings, we answer the notifications, we read others’ writings, highlight, clap and respond.
It’s all fun until it ISN’T.
We are living our best lives at home, at work and on Medium…yet we are TIRED. What were once enjoyable outlets sometimes becomes a taskmaster that won’t let us rest.
When we feel stressed over what used to be fun, it is time to
STEP OFF THE MERRY-GO-ROUND.
What does that mean, exactly?
1. RECOGNIZE there is a PROBLEM — if you are content and happy with your home, work and writing life, there is no need to change a thing. If there IS a problem of too much, too many and too often, then it is time to make some changes.
Recently I found myself on overload. What had changed? I realized that I’d committed to a read to read group. It was GREAT…until it wasn’t. Reading so much tipped the scales, it seemed. Even my eyesight told me that I was hurting myself by doing too much of something that should have been fun.
2. Declare a DAY OF REST every week — even if all is well, it is healthy for our spirit, soul and body to REST. Thus, when we pick up the pen or hit the keyboard again, we will be refreshed and looking forward to more creativity pouring out.
For me, personally, I choose Saturdays to be a day of rest. Often my son and I travel off into the countryside to take photos and enjoy the rural scenery. By Sunday, my next day of writing work, I am so excited about what to write and then I begin afresh.
What to do when you REST — whatever you normally do, put that aside and do other things to refresh you. How great you will feel after a good night’s sleep, maybe even a mid-day nap, some time outside and maybe just some fun reading.
3. AFTER you REST, come back with FRESH EYES - what was clouded by busyness can now be seen more clearly.
I, personally, begin to plan my week ahead and what new I will be writing. With a well laid-out plan, my week goes more smoothly. I also include time for editing rough drafts and submitting finished pieces.
In regard to your home life, maybe you can find ways to streamline the chores needed to run a home. One of my writer friends on Medium decided to make more time for writing so is now using a robot vacuum cleaner daily to keep dog hair under control.
What can YOU do to clear away some space for WRITING.
In regard to work life, maybe there are tasks which you can delegate to others. (More on that in a future writer’s time management article).
In regard to your writing life, streamline file management and good recordkeeping so that you are free to WRITE.
Then you will have clarity in:
What you want to write
Where you want to submit a particular piece
…..
If you are writing on Medium, now you will have time to:
Track which articles are of most interest on Medium
Look over your Ideas Folder
Choose one idea and get a rough draft going
Edit your work — so much easier accomplished with fresh eyes and brain!
Once a piece is published on Medium or elsewhere,
Decide WHERE ELSE you might want to send your piece (more on that in a future post).
Because you are well rested and can take a long view of Medium, you will KNOW which pieces resonate with your readers.
What is the most popular:
Short stories?
Your poetry?
Non-fiction travel?
Non-fiction stories that have happened to you?
Non-fiction medical?
Political views?
Faith?
The writing life?
Do you need to branch out to other niches?
HOW I DO IT: Now that I’ve been on Medium for a while, I can see exactly what pieces resonate with my readers. I will continue to write similar articles. Plus I add new areas — medical, humor, more photojournalism.
By stepping off the merry-go-round and surveying what’s been happening in your writing life and Medium account,
you will learn more about yourself in the process. That’s amazing!
Let’s take time to step off the merry-go-round for our own good!
Then step into LIFE once again.
“Remember to observe the Sabbath as a holy day. Six days a week are for your daily duties and your regular work, but the seventh day is a day of Sabbath rest before the Lord your God. On that day you are to do no work of any kind…. For in six days the Lord made the heaven, earth, and sea, and everything in them, and rested the seventh day; so he blessed the Sabbath day and set it aside for rest.” Exodus 20:8–11
Thank you for taking time to read this. I wish you well on your writing journey.
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