The Art of Slow Writing

Writer Abroad is reading a great new book called, The Art of Slow Writing, by Louise DeSalvo. But to be honest, Writer Abroad is surprised she likes it.

This is because Writer Abroad finds a lot of books about writing tiring or a waste of time. Why? Because reading them takes away time from writing. In her experience, a lot of people spend more time talking about what they do than they do actually doing it. Writers are no exception. That’s why if Writer Abroad is going to read, which she does consider part of her job, she wants to read books in the genre and/or on the topic she is currently writing about—these typically provide more inspiration to her than a book about writing.

Writer Abroad’s passion for doing rather than talking about doing stems from her days as an advertising copywriter when her colleagues spent most of the day playing ping pong and talking about advertising—instead of creating the actual television commercial or print ad. And then they’d start working at 6 p.m. when Writer Abroad was ready to go home. It drove her nuts, mainly because she was seen as non-productive if she left at 6 p.m., despite having worked at least eight hours more than many of her colleagues at that point.

Now that she has more control over her time and is beginning 2015 by finally becoming a full-time freelancer, she vows not to waste a minute of her work time. Luckily, The Art of Slow Writing doesn’t waste her time. Each chapter takes only a couple minutes to read and gives a lot of good information in that space.

So far, highlights of the book include a discussion of the process journal, which is a journal writers keep to track what we accomplish and how we accomplish it—and our feelings about everything. A process journal is an ongoing conversation with ourselves about our work. By reading past process journals we can understand how we felt during different points in our projects—and remember that our current feelings are normal. Writer Abroad is now inspired to begin a process journal.

In the book there is also a discussion of the importance of another kind of journal, called a “notebook” by Joan Didion, where the writer writes down “how it felt to be me” at a particular time. This kind of journal helps us remember who we used to be, and we can later draw on it for essays, memoir, or even for a character in a novel. Writer Abroad doesn’t usually keep a notebook, but she is now convinced she should, especially when she reads over the notebook she did keep, which was during her daughter’s first year. She can see now that it is hard to remember who she was as a new mother emotionally, even if she can remember specific incidents—like wishing she were a man during that time since they had it so much easier!

Another chapter in Slow Writing talks about taking time off, which is also important for creativity. Time away from work is so important for everyone, and yet Americans don’t seem to understand it—or if they do, they aren’t given the proper amount of time off to truly relax.  Instead, their “time away” is ping pong at the office (or worse, “pajama day at the office”). But sorry, anything at the office isn’t a vacation no matter how much fun it supposedly creates. After living for almost a decade in Europe, Writer Abroad vows to continue taking at least a month of time off each year. The difference it makes in her work is real.

How to be a more productive writer

How to be more productive? New research says we should relax.

Not surprisingly, this new research on relaxation and productivity is American research. Europeans don’t need to research relaxation because they already practice it. Most European cultures already encourage things like long lunches and substantial vacation time.

Relaxation is so important to Europeans, that Writer Abroad has had her attempts at doing it criticized by her European colleagues:

                     

Relax. You'll get more done.

“You’re only taking two weeks off and going to three Spanish cities? How will you have time to relax?”

One Swiss colleague in particular enjoys reminding Writer Abroad when it is noon and she is still at her desk instead of at lunch:

“Lunch break, it’s noon,” he’ll say, picking up his coat at 11:59 so he’s out the door exactly at noon and not a minute later.

Later, maybe 15 minutes later, Writer Abroad finally goes out too.

Of course, to an American, an hour for lunch or two weeks for one vacation is practically a lifetime. Exactly why they need to begin putting their newfound research into practice.

According to a recent article in The New York Times, Relax! You’ll be more productive, which discussed this new research on relaxation, we should incorporate things like daytime workouts, short naps, and longer, more frequent vacations into our lives if we want to get more done.

It also stressed the advantages gained from working in periods that last no more than 90 minutes.

If you need help putting the 90-minute work period into practice, have a baby. As Writer Abroad has previously written, having a baby can actually make you a more productive writer.

This 90-minute concept is exactly why.

In fact, Writer Abroad has been using this technique for the last year and a half—working during Baby M’s naptimes, which, coincidentally, means about two 90-minute periods per day. Just enough to pretty much get everything done she needs to get done and still have enough energy leftover to relax—or read Goodnight Moon 999 times.

  

On not writing

My parents were visiting over the last two weeks, so instead of stressing over trying to balance my work with my visitors, I spent almost that entire time without writing anything. Since I'm a workaholic, I was kind of nervous about not writing, but it turned out to be easy. No book editing, no copywriting, no blogging, no emails, no essay writing, no queries, no nothing.

Out of not writing, came two ideas for my writing: one for a book and one for an essay.

I guess you could say that not writing is productive too. Maybe I should relax more often.

How do you schedule time away from writing? And if you have visitors that come for long periods of time, do they respect your work even if you work from home?

Ten Year Guarantee. Not!

photo by hilldreamer

If you buy a set of luggage in the United States, it often comes with a 10-year guarantee. This 10-year guarantee is meant for Americans who have an average of two weeks of vacation a year—the least amount of vacation time in the western world.

If you move to Europe, where people have four to six weeks of vacation, the luggage you bought stateside now has more like a three to five-year guarantee. Remember this before you start blaming your beat up bag on Samsonite. Because maybe you should blame yourself.

Travel freak.

Takes one to know one. Last week, while vacuuming her Swiss apartment, Writer Abroad found a zipper handle on her carpet. It was from her luggage whose last and now final resting place will be Swiss Bunker That Is Her Basement.

Yep. Another one bites the dust. But Writer Abroad couldn’t be more pleased.

Writer Abroad thinks that having a dilapidated piece of luggage is one of the best things you can show for your life—especially if you’re a writer. She keeps them piled up in Swiss Bunker That Is Her Basement so that she can be reminded of just how much she’s seen of Europe and learned about the United States as a result.

In that spirit, she’s looking forward to her next bag beating. And what do you know, it’s Easter weekend, a four-day weekend here in Switzerland. So along with her travel journal, she’s getting out her newest travel victim. Let’s see what kind of havoc a bit of Slovenia can create on this little Samsonite.

Do you take pride in your beaten up bags? Will you be treating them to a little Easter pounding? Writer Abroad hopes so. She wishes you, your family, and your luggage a very Happy Easter.