The
fact of the matter is, most writers need
to be alone in order to write. A quiet place, free of distractions from well-meaning
family and friends, is one of the most important tools in a writer’s arsenal.
But what about when you’re not writing?
What
writers also need is to find lives beyond their desks and computers. After all,
fresh experiences feed the creative process. If we do nothing but sit at a desk
all day, staring at a blank page or a flickering screen, we soon run out of
ideas.
Here
are just a few ways you can rediscover the world beyond your desk:
1.
Pick up a new skill by taking a
course--and not online. Sign up at your local community college. Learn to make
crème brulée or find out what an f/stop is and how it’s used.
2.
Go for a walk in the park, taking your
time and taking in your surroundings with each step. With each visit, you’re
bound to find something new.
3.
Make a lunch date with a friend. Try a
restaurant that neither of you has gone to before. And order a dish you’ve
never tried before, either.
4.
Join a bowling team or a book club or
some other social group. Shy around strangers? Drag a willing (or even slightly
unwilling) accomplice along for moral support.
5.
Now here’s the really scary option. Go
on a date! If you’re married, make a date with your spouse. Just give yourself
permission to take the evening off and have some fun.
The
best part is, you don’t have to write
about any of it when you get home. But you can if you want to. Better yet,
repeat any of the above and/or make a new list of things to do. The
possibilities are only limited by your imagination--as a writer, you have
plenty on which to draw.
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Betty Dobson is an
award-winning writer of short fiction, essays and poetry. She also writes
newspaper and magazine articles but is still waiting for those awards to
materialize. In the meantime, she continues to run InkSpotter Publishing, which is always open
to submissions and queries.
