I’m exhausted; physically, mentally, spiritually, in those weird parts of your toes that shouldn’t be hurting. We have one more week until December arrives, so let’s look forward to what’s to come.
A rest; on December 1st I’m sleeping in. Wait, let me check my schedule. Fine, not December 1st, but December 3rd I can sleep in, and that’s a good thing. Some people are writing machines. They can write more after NaNoWriMo while simultaneously editing. I need sleep, and sunlight.
Breaks are writing productive. It allows us time to think and reflect, and in turn, learn from our experiences. It’s the same concept of staring at a blank piece of paper or computer screen. There’s no actual “work” to show, regardless it’s part of the process.
Writing is funny because we don’t necessarily have to show a word count every day. We just need to put in the effort in a day, and words tend to follow from our example. Other people can’t wrap their minds around this fact. We can write nothing for a week, then type out 30,000 words over the next two weeks.
If we don’t take regular breaks, we can suffer the real possibility of burning out. It’s easier to grow something in well tended soil than to try in ash. In December, take it easy. You’ve earned it.