Quantum Storytelling

The importance of breaks and rest for writers is not often discussed. I bring it up because I find it is important–even crucial, for writers to take breaks. I don’t just mean breaks during a writing session. What I’m talking about is a sabbatical. Days off.

Yesterday (Sunday) when I woke up, my first urge was to dive into the site redesign. I had already spent most of Saturday working on it. I had it in my mind that I would get it done before Monday. I encountered a few snags, as often happens on these types of projects. There ended up being more work involved than I previously realized.

Instead of jumping right into action yesterday, I stopped myself. I felt a little guilty. My wife and I hadn’t gone out even once yet for the weekend. It was a nice day, so I proposed that we head to a park nearby. We headed over to the park after picking up some refreshments.

The fresh air did me some good. I brought along my camera and took some photos. I’m always looking for excuses to haul out my camera. My wife and I took a relaxing walk through the park. There were ducks and geese being fed by other park strollers. Some men were fishing on a pier that juts out over the lake.

I did lose time working on the website redesign, but the tradeoff was more than worth it. I gained back a piece of sanity and perspective. Sometimes we become too self-absorbed in our work, or lifetsyles. We forget that there is an outside world, and that it is beautiful.

As writers we could all use a little more of that. Don’t be afraid to take breaks. You’ll get your work done, don’t worry. Get a breath of fresh air. Clear your head. It might even help solve some of your problems. At the very least, it will give you a little perspective. Not to mention some overdue physical exercise–go for a walk.

P.S. The website will be done soon enough.