Anyone else find themselves super excited to welcome a new year only to struggle with the whole words-putting-together process once 2024 arrived?

I had all sorts of plans. A daily word count. Exciting ideas of where my story was headed. But when I opened my document…

Nothing much happened. If anything the quote attributed to novelist Oscar Wilde sprang to mind.

“I was working on the proof of one of my poems all the morning, and took out a comma. In the afternoon I put it back again.”

Aside from my client work and my monthly newsletter, my writing has been coming along, well, slower than I’d like.

So rather than pound my fists or stare absently at the screen, I employed my best procrastination tactics. Organizing my closet. Unloading the dishwasher.  Cooking. Going for a walk. Reading. Lugging bags of clothes from said closet organization to a nearby donation site.

And what I realized in the process? My holiday break from writing wasn’t quite long enough apparently. Also, I desperately needed to switch up my routine.

Instead of my familiar playlist, the scent of my whipped coffee candle, and easy access to coffee refills, I packed up my laptop and headed to the local coffee shop. With the sounds of lively conversation and Frank Sinatra singing in the background, I began to find my rhythm again.

Sometimes a break from writing to rest or cultivate your other interests is exactly what you need. Those are both essential for our creative livelihood. But sometimes what helps stave off the cobwebs is simply a change of scenery. It doesn’t have to be fancy— or even that far away—to do the trick.

How about you, fellow writers? What do you do when the words aren’t coming as quickly as you’d like? How do you fight through those times when writing feels about as appealing as the requisite root canal?