Am I less of a writer when writing burns me out?
Of course not, in fact, “burning out” comes with the territory! It’s a fact of writerly life. I read a post by Chuck Windig that I thought was really helpful. Be warned, Chuck is very…colorful. 🙂
…BURNOUT
Problem: You flared up and burned out and now you’re naught but a crispy charcoal briquette. Your internal creative space looks like what’s left after a house-fire. You’re tired. Exhausted, even.
Solution: Jeez, take a break. Step away from the story or I’ll Taser you right in the naughty bits. Go reward yourself for working so hard. Have some ice cream. Go for a walk. Build a Lamborghini from the bones of your enemies. Don’t go away from your story for too long. A few hours. A day or two or three. We spend a ton of IEP (Intellectual Energy Points) on our work and our life, so go, recharge, let your creative juices once more pickle your headcheese. Then get back to work with fresh eyes. Bring coffee. Because coffee.
-Chuck Windig in his post
I may not be doing all of the…interesting suggestions that Chuck talks about…but I still have to find a creative outlet during my “burn outs”.
So I play on my violin (which may drive my neighbors nuts), go read, or play tons of video games. There’s something about each of those activities that really loosens me up. Maybe it’s because I’m focusing all of my “IEP” on something else. WHICH is the overall mission!
So what do you do when writing becomes a chore?
