Nurturing the Muse

 by Enisa Haines

Life in all its manifestations, with daily obligations and constant demands on our time, most often comes with no guarantee of 'happy ever after'. So, too, for a writer and the inner source of inspiration that fuels their creativity. 

A fickle creature is the muse. At times she eagerly inspires me to bring the story playing in my mind into vivid life on paper. At others she hides out of reach, unwilling to appear. It could be because life interrupts with unexpected happenings - emergency surgery for a life-threatening head injury from a car accident, a marriage breakup, the unexpected passing of a brother, those are a few of my experiences.  Or it could be an issue with the story I'm writing. There's a block that won't go away no matter how many times I sit down to write so I feel discouraged and a growing frustration so the story waits unwritten. 

When creativity refuses to cooperate I know my muse is still there. It's just asking for some nurturing before inspiration sparks to life. How we nurture differs for everyone and countless articles written discuss the ways, some I've listed below:

• Meet with other writers - whether a writers' conference/retreat, a writing group or critique partners, there's creative energy in abundance that's sure to inspire.
• Read a genre you don't write - and so stretching your imagination to other styles of writing.
• Carry a journal - the muse can appear in times both expected and unexpected.
• Go to a public place such as a cafe - watching and listening to people, seeing how they interact can inspire new scenes and characters 
• Catch up with friends - conversations can bring inspiration
• Clean and clear your writing space - uncluttering does wonders for imagination 

I've had great inspiration from each but for me evoking ideas and emotions is best achieved by:

Immersing myself in nature - taking a walk through the bushland around where I live or simply gazing through the window and watching the rain relaxes my mind and gets my creativity flowing.

Meditating (with lit candle, and crystal) - starting my day by focusing on breathing, , on being mindful and aware, brings a state of calmness and clarity that helps my mind stop wandering and instead concentrate, increase productivity. 

Being grateful - I always feels good when I've got to the end of a writing session and words had flowed, and acknowledging that with thanks feels even better.

Are there times your muse needs nourishing? How do you bring your muse to life? 

Love to love: listening to rock ballads. I'm visualising stories as I listen to the words.

Love to laugh: at the funny antics of characters in romantic comedies. 

Love to learn: all things writing.

Are You a Productive Writer?

By Marilyn Forsyth

Am I a Productive Writer? 

Image courtesy of giphy

Short answer: NO.

It’s why I’ve been researching articles that outline simple steps used by ‘Super Productive People’ to be…well, productive; developing habits like rising early, planning each day, incorporating exercise, etc. So, if what I've read is right, that something like 40% of our daily actions are driven by our habits, then it should be doable to create a new daily routine incorporating these steps, right?

To that end, I’ve taken a few of these suggested habits and looked into how I might actually do just that.

1.     Plan Your Day the Night Before

Knowing what your goals are for the day gets the ball rolling straight away in the morning. Setting 3 goals is manageable - you can always do more. Be sure to prioritise your writing.

Makes sense.

2.     Get Up Earlier

Gives you more time (everyone’s most limited resource) in the day. Works best by being consistent with a wake-up time. Might mean going to bed a bit earlier to get 7-9 hours’ sleep.

I can do that.

3.     Tackle Your (Writing) Goals First Thing

Skip the emails, social media and other distractions and get straight to work when your energy is at its highest.

Hmm. I’m not really a morning person; I’ve found my creative energy peaks later in the day so I do my social media stuff when I first get up. Might be worth a try if I’m going to commit to this, though. (Unfortunately, scrolling is not productive.)

Image courtesy of giphy

4.     Create ‘Office Hours’ (for social media/email interactions)

Social media sucks so much time. Set a hard limit for time spent on it.

Good idea. I really do need to do this if I want to get more done.

Image courtesy of giphy

5.     Do NOT Multitask

Do one task at a time and see it through to completion.

Oh crikey! Is that even possible??

Image courtesy of giphy

6.     Schedule Breaks

Get out of that chair! Not only does it give your eyes a rest but 20 minutes of exercise a day is good for your health and general well-being. And always have a glass of water handy.

I’ll see how I go with this. When I’m in the zone I find it hard to take time out.

Image courtesy of giphy

7.     Perfection is Unrealistic

Yes, we all want our work to be the best it can be, but don’t give in to the temptation of constantly revising and tweaking your writing. Set a time limit to finish your final edit and stick to it.

I’m already working hard on this as I am a bit of a perfectionist.

8.     Outsource

I wish! Realistically, unless you’re making money from your writing, this isn’t an option for most of us.

It’s obvious that just because these ‘habits’ work for other people, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll work for me and, reading back over this, I’ve realised I’m not going to be able to incorporate all the ‘habits’ (at one time) to increase my productivity.

So, maybe I’ll start with one. What’s that old saying? The longest journey begins with the first step? Wish me luck!

Love to Love: my new lifestyle. Living in an apartment in the city is fantastic!

Love to Laugh: at the Graham Norton Show. Love his interviewing technique. 😂

Love to Learn: anything and everything about ancient Egypt, which is why I bought tickets to the Horizon of Khufu experience. It was sensational! Here’s the link if you’d like to know more: Horizon of Khufu | Sydney Olympic Park

 

RWAustralia Conference round-up

 By Cassandra Ssmuels

Greetings everyone, what a month it has been. I had the great pleasure to attend the annual Romance Writers of Australia conference in the picturesque Glenelg in Adelaide.

Fellow Blogger and Breathless member, Enisa Haines and I shared a room, and what an amazing view we had.

Friday night was the cocktail party and what fun that was. The theme was Trope Actually and I must say there were many runaway brides that night. Enisa went as a fortune teller complete with Crystal Ball, and I went as all the tropes - most of which fell off during the night. I got in a quick hug with Hugh Jackman, and enjoyed catching up with writing buddies, and finding out what they have been up to since last year.

Saturday was full of amazing workshops including a key speech from BJ Daniels - "It's never too late to reach your dream". Followed by 50 years of Mills and Boon where Enisa was asked, as a founding member of RWAust, to sit on the panel to discuss her long love affair with Mills and Boon books. She is second in from the left.

I then attended a wonderful workshop on "Success with a Series" by Anne Gracie which was timely as I have a series I am writing.

After a full day of workshops we swapped the jeans for frocks, and attended the HQ and Mills and Boon Gala awards dinner which was fabulous. Having been a bit of a contest addict in my early years, it was so nice to see up and coming authors winning and placing in the same contests. Special mention to one of my fave authors and friend on her Historical Ruby award - congratulations Amy Rose Bennett.

Sunday was again chocka-block full of workshops and key note speeches. "I Don't Just Write Kissing Books" by Elana Johnson was emotional and really made me think why I write what I do.

I didn't get to hear all of Christina Laurens key note, but I heard it was really good, and there were plenty of laughs.

Next year, the conference will be held in Wrest Point in Hobart Tasmania. So if you are interested, check out the RWAustralia website.

I love to love spending time with my writer friends at conference every year.

I love to laugh with my crit partners.

I love to learn  New things and ways of writing