Getting back in the saddle after a long hiatus.
It’s tough, gang.
I-Can’t-Do-It Gremlins move in to an idle workshop. Sit down at a dusty keyboard and they whisper paralyzing thoughts in your ear:
What can you do?
OH I THOUGHT YOU’D NEVER ASK:
- Be patient with yourself. Your writing muscles are a little rusty. If you usually write 1,000 words a day, after a break, you might only squeeze out 400 words for the first several sessions. So what? Just do what you can do.
- Be hard on yourself. Make yourself write. Don’t put it off until tomorrow, which as we all know, never comes. Sit in front of that screen until you’ve plunked down some words. They don’t have to be good, they just have to be words.
- Get yourself back in the habit of thinking about writing, even when you’re not writing. Carry around your idea notebook to catch random snatches of conversation, picture book premises, blog ideas, plot twists. (Or use your smartphone app.)
- Connect with your writing buddies–in person and online. Critique groups, book signings, write-ins, workshops, even lunch or the #amwriting hashtag on Twitter can keep you fired up about your goals.
AND WRITE.




















