5 Reasons for a Writer to take Time to Celebrate



Happy St. Patrick's Day

             As writers, we are dedicated to our craft. Day and night, when an inspiration hits, we’ll stop eating, climb out of bed, or excuse ourselves from friends to jot something down. We write for hours and days on end to meet a deadline and finish a novel.

We have to write; it’s what we do. And if we aren’t writing, we are thinking about writing, or researching, or outlining, or plotting.

But don’t forget to take timeout for you. Even just a short break can give those creative juices time to refresh, replenish, and rev up the imagination for the next long stint at writing. Just like rest and recovery after exercise is important, breaks after writing is important to the writer.

            And here’s the reason why . . .

1)   It helps you maintain a better mental balance.

2)   Short breaks give you time for short bursts of exercise. Studies show that 15-20 minutes of exercise help you burn fat, stay healthy, and increase endorphins.

3)   That means it can reduce stress and tension, re-energize your thinking, and add to mental alertness.

4)   Short bursts of exercise can give you an ‘endorphin rush’ and is the reason why it makes you feel good. If writing has you uptight, take a break and go for a walk, run, exercise, or just talking with a friend can give you an endorphin rush. And what does that do? Endorphins can enhance pleasure and rev up the thinking and creativity process.

5)   The bottom-line: take enough time away from writing to re-energize body, mind, and writing.