When to Take a Break
Last week, I came down with strep throat, the first time since I was seven. With taking care of my family, keeping up on my blog and paper journal, maintaining my work at my church, and reviewing the chapters a free-lance editor I hired had edited, I would have been worried about how my infection would interfere with all of the above if I hadn’t been too sick to care.
For two days, while my kids were at school, I sacked out on the couch and watched an old TV series. I rarely watch TV shows now and never hour after hour. By Saturday, I discovered two things: I was feeling better and I really needed that break to my daily routine, which had become a daily grind.
In this blog, I have said you always should be on the alert for inspiration and write every day. But when it becomes a burden, you need to take a break. Even just a few days can be refreshing to your writer’s soul.
I have noticed when writing fiction my creative juices are like water behind a dam. Sometimes, when I keep the flood gates closed, my creativity builds. Then, when I finally open the gates, the creativity reaches flood stage and I get carried away with writing.
Before my illness, my creative juices were dribbling over the dam. Taking a break has built up my reservoir, and I am eager to get back to work.
When do you feel you need a break? What do you do during a break?
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