Have you ever felt so enclosed by another person’s presence that you wanted to pluck out all your eyelashes?  That is sometimes how we writers feel with our writing.  I’m here to tell you it’s unhealthy to stare inanimately at a computer screen all day or night or morning.  You need to close the laptop, and step away from the keyboard.

The Trouble with Writers

The thing about us writers is that whenever something is not going our way with our writing, we fester.  We hover over our computers or typewriters or notebooks and we fray a wire that will soon electrocute us if we refuse to step away and give it a rest.  The best thing for us in these situations is separation.

Keep a Journal

When I was a freshman in college, I kept a small, brown leather journal that I tried to write in everyday.  Any random sentence that popped in my head went in that book.

Her eyes danced when they caught sight of mine, but then died just as quickly, as if someone had licked their fingers and pinched them over a burning wick – the fire killed with serpentine ribbons of smoke and a sizzle.

That was my very first journal entry.  Even if it’s just a scent or a conversation – I’ve written down several I’ve heard walking to class, – or a feeling.  Write snippets, or long chapters’ worth of new things to read over when you find yourself festering.

Take a Walk

It does writers no good to stare at a blank, white screen all day – or even worse, a screen filled with writing you hate.  Don’t just sit there and mope about it.  If you feel like it sucks, it’s not going to get better by hacking away at the keyboard until your fingers bleed only to produce more lame writing.  Step away from your desk, step outside, and take in some fresh air.

Move your legs; get your adrenaline pumping, even if it’s just a little bit.  Staring at an LCD screen will give you a headache, but exercising your body will revitalize your brain.  Not to mention, it gets your endorphins flowing, which can relieve stress.

Photograph

Photography is a beautiful thing.  Through photography, we find out what angles and subjects strike our interests most.  Our photography eye is not unlike our writing ear.  What captures our attention is much the same as what entrances our souls; both are related to what’s important to us.  I often write in images, anyway.  I picture what I write as though it were a group of stills I have to rearrange or a film unfolding before me.

If your eyes are bleeding and your brain is about to pound itself out of your ears, don’t keep torturing yourself.  Take a break.  Don’t lock your brain to a screen when things just aren’t working.  Do something different to refresh your mind.  Allow yourself a little space.