It's Ok to Take a Break

by Christine.

I have previously written about writing goals and sticking to a schedule.  I believe it's important to motivate yourself in this way and see your writing moving forward.  However, there are times when you may just need to take a break from writing - and this is ok!

Perhaps it's a lack of inspiration or other things that are tying up your time; whatever the reason, don't feel guilty about taking a pause from writing.

I was planning to write the sixth book in the Free Rein series this year, but wasn’t pressuring myself to get started when I didn’t know what I wanted the book to be about.  Continuing on with my usual routine, it was when I was studying a particular area of Equine Health in my degree that I came across a topic that seemed like it would work perfectly for the context of book 6.

I was rapt!  The idea for the story and some parts of different chapters easily came together.

Once the book was a quarter written, I hit a writing slump.  That has been the case for the past few weeks and although it is unusual, I decided to not let it bother me.  There is always plenty of other work to be done to take up my time!

Cadence relates to the 'increase in a moment of suspension' in a gait.

As I was reading through the book Dressage Terms Defined I came across a definition for cadence and suddenly had an idea for the next chapter in my novel.  Once again, writing came easily.

Although it is important to set yourself goals and deadlines, I believe that at times you just need to take a break, not pressure yourself and wait for the motivation and ideas to come – even from the most unlikely of sources.  If you love being creative and writing, sometimes it’s just a question of exposing yourself to other avenues (reading, study, conversation, etc) to gain that inspiration.

What do you do when you experience writer's block?