Although it sounds like an oxymoron, downtime is actually
very good for a writer; it’s also good for your story. Let’s discuss this…
As writers we pressure ourselves to meet deadlines (okay,
with added pressure from anxious editors) and add to our word count every day.
Just like real life, though, we need to refresh now and then. Avoid the guilt
and self-incrimination that comes from taking breaks and you will also be staving
off negative things like burn-out and writer’s block.
When you reach that point where you just can’t think of words,
change projects, read a book, take a walk, or go sit in the park and do some
people watching with a notepad to jot down ideas that come to you as you watch
strangers interact. By all means work towards meeting your deadlines but make
sure you give yourself time to breathe, literally. While many of us do find we
perform well under pressure, we still have our own breaking points. Reading
something is like feeding yourself and providing nourishment. Taking a walk or
doing some exercise will help get the juices flowing, creative ad metabolism.
Scanning headlines, people watching and re-reading old discarded writing
projects will help to put new ideas at your fingertips.
Downtime in your story is also beneficial. The best stories
are filled with highs and lows, tension and conflicts, and depending on your
genre some emotional gut-wrenching and edge-of-your-seat nail-biting. It is
wonderful when our readers just want to keep turning the pages to find what
happens next, but we need to give them some satisfaction along the way before
we start our next tension-filled climb. Solve some of the minor conflicts and
give your characters and your readers time to catch their breath. Add in a few
easy scenes, not mere fluff, whatever goes on in that easy scene still needs to
have some importance to the story – the scene might help show the relationship shared
with another character, how your conflicted character works through problems or
nurses regrets, or might set up the introduction of a character who will be
adding to the story line in the next chapter.
Professionally if your desk is empty and you have nothing to
fill your work day, research new markets, edit completed first drafts, and go
through your random people-watching notes for new ideas. Keep breathing and
intersperse liberally with writing.
Writing Exercise:
Look around you to find a piece of art work (a painting, a statue, a
sketch or a photograph). What is the story the picture is telling you? Write at
least one paragraph about the picture. For example, if the picture is a pencil
sketch of a large sailing ship, write about the people on board and the journey
they are taking.
Writing Prompt:
Using a newspaper (in print or online), make a list of 10 to 15 story
ideas just from the headlines. All you want to do is write a few words, but no
more than one sentence, for each idea. For example one of today’s headlines in
my local paper is “U.N.: MERS isn’t a
global emergency”; that might inspire the following story: Scientist races to solve epidemic.
Challenge Assignment: Choose any four random items, one in each of
the following categories: furniture or vehicle, food, animal or plant, and
anything related to money/debt/income/price. Set a timer for 30-minutes and
write ANY story that utilizes all four items as main ingredients. Don’t stop
writing until the timer rings (or beeps).
