Guilt Free Writing Time
I’ll be honest, I’m in the full December crunch. Between parties, the mall, food, family stuff, baby-prep, work…the holidays are (somewhat) a voluntary form of insanity. I barely have time to figure out what to get my wife’s 3rd cousin-once-removed, much less a list of things for myself that everyone keeps hounding me about (all items must be between $10 and $50). Now, I’m supposed to blog about what people can get you…
*Bret’s mind explodes…you wipe itty-bitty brain bits off your monitor*
Just kidding.
I’m happy to share with you my opinion of the single best thing a writer can receive: GUILT FREE WRITING TIME1
1This is not just time, but time where you don’t have to feel BAD about writing…a.k.a. what you’re missing or neglecting.
Picture it: Sitting at your desk with hot coffee. The music is on and the manuscript is open. No distractions. No lingering worry that you should be at the family party or doing the laundry or any of that jazz. Sounds like the holy grail, huh?
It’s not. Your friends/family hold the golden ticket – the same folk desperately searching for the perfect gift to give the writer in their life.
Here’s how it works:
- They cut 20 (or 40 or 80) strips of paper
- On each they write (or have printed):
- Staple twice along short side.
- Wrap with some purrrrty paper.
- You open, surprised and maybe a bit teary.
- At any time in the next year, you can redeem a voucher (or chunk of them).2
2Make sure to give ample notice
- The issuer arranges for all your distractions to go adios, assuring you it’s no trouble.
- Example: Smiling, your sister-in-law watches the baby and let’s you go to the coffee shop.
- Another Example: Your spouse makes up a perfectly valid excuse why you can’t be at the church potluck.
- Yet Another Example: The kids promise that they shall not knock on the office door, scream bloody murder in the house, or bother you in any way – unless death is imminent.
- Then you sit down and write.3
3Warning: Don’t waste this time reading blogs (exception being The Muses), Facebooking, Twittering, etc. Doing that would be like taking a sharpie to the sweater someone gifted you. Not cool. So write and savor.
See, I figured out what they can get you. If only my aunt’s dog was a writer…
6 comments
When I first saw this post, my brain was trying to twist the heading into something ARC-giveaway related: "'Free Gilt Reading Time?' No, that's not it. It says 'Writing.' And 'Free' is in the wrong place. And 'Gilt' is spelled wrong."
Haha, at Ryan above.
I like this idea of guilt-free writing time. I like it a lot. I like it so much, in fact, I'm adding it to my wish list.
Thanks for stopping by to comment on Katherine's interview!
I love this post. What a wonderful idea! The guilt is inescapable, sometimes.
I sometimes glance up--all bleary-eyed-- from my screen to see my poor sons, bowls held up in front of them, like Oliver Twist supplicants. "Mama, can we eat today?"
Of course, they are both well over six feet tall, outweigh me by a hundred pounds and one's ALMOST graduated from college.
STill-- a mama never loses that guilty feeling. :)
I'd LOVE love
sorry- my computer went all rogue on me.
I wanted to say that I love, LOVE your site. I read every day, though I don't often comment.
You are too right on about spending too much valuable time on blogs and other social media. But I love u guys. :)
Ryan, You know what...I actually worried about that! But then I thought, Nah, I'm getting too nit-picky.
Beth, it was a great interview with great questions.
Janet, Thank you SO much. Your comment made my day. And it's a Friday, so it takes a lot to make it much better.
Sounds like a great method. I'll have to try it out sometime. With a full pot of coffee of course :)
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