Last week combined illness and writer's block with the result of zero accomplishments (save sewing a Halloween costume for my daughter and crocheting a scarf for my own Halloween costume). I know it's not popular to admit to writer's block--I feel sometimes that if you say you believe in it, other writing types act as if you've just admitted to believe in the Boogey Man or something equally infantile. I think a better name might be "Brain Tantrums" or "Sick Leave for the Intelligence." Honestly, I've reached a point in my current work/home/jobbing life that I just don't have enough oomph. For the past three years, I've tried to limit myself to one day off a week, a day that I still usually wind up using for editorial work, and it's okay to sometimes admit that I'm tired.
So, I was sick, and then I was tired, and I took a few days off. I will probably take it fairly easy this week, too, focusing on fun projects, like a short story that I'm writing just for me. Or maybe some poetry. And yes, my favorite fun activity: decorating for Halloween! Maybe we'll make another batch of dried apple people. Last year's (pictured above) turned out great.
I would encourage you to do the same! We all have work and projects and things we have to do, but there's something about autumn that always reminds me that creativity is at its heart a fun activity. If you don't get enough fun in your system, if you don't let yourself creatively play, then your art really suffers.
So peeps--what are some playful creative activities you plan to enjoy?
3 comments:
I've been sleeping a LOT. I took a week off from edits last week and I swear all I did was sleep. Sigh.
I suppose I needed it, but I'd rather have been doing something FUN.
I think health-based writer's block is legitimate - and i include stress in that category. There's only so much your brain can do at optimum, so you throw in something that takes up energy, like being sick or stressed, and pouf! goes the art.
Forgive the wikipedia link, but it's accurate:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_load
-SheikYurbouti
Really, it's not popular to admit to writer's block? Seems like anyone who wrote for a long enough time would encounter Vicious Mega Block too much to deny it.
The restlessness of autumn must have something to do with our harvesting instincts, when we wake up and take a good look around us to see where we are, balance our accounts, fill up our winter storehouses...and such. Maybe that's related to the spike in creativity. Maybe.
I'm so glad you're regularly updating this blog! I'll try to catch up with it.
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