Only a couple of days ago I wrote about the importance of habit and ritual- I have done so since the start of this blog, almost seven years ago. I advocate the crafting of processes that we can engage in over and over, day after day, in a sustainable, healthy way. This type of repetition has lead many scholars to success--it is one of the keys to mine.
However, that does not mean that we can't be creative, have periods of time that are more open and spontaneous. For example, I write every day, in a highly ritualized, prescribed manner. But during the summer, and usually once a week during the academic year, I like to go on drives for a "writing day." I don't write the whole day, but I take my writing sessions "on the road" going to random coffee houses, libraries, even piers and parks all over the Puget Sound area. I will use these days for primary articles, or let myself write whatever I want. I have multiple writing sessions, or just write a few minutes here and there.
Days like this help keep me fresh, and prevent me from being bored with my daily habits, and feeling good about my daily writing allows me to let it rip when I feel like it--the two work hand in hand. One of the many interesting paradoxes and surprises of the writing process.
However, that does not mean that we can't be creative, have periods of time that are more open and spontaneous. For example, I write every day, in a highly ritualized, prescribed manner. But during the summer, and usually once a week during the academic year, I like to go on drives for a "writing day." I don't write the whole day, but I take my writing sessions "on the road" going to random coffee houses, libraries, even piers and parks all over the Puget Sound area. I will use these days for primary articles, or let myself write whatever I want. I have multiple writing sessions, or just write a few minutes here and there.
Days like this help keep me fresh, and prevent me from being bored with my daily habits, and feeling good about my daily writing allows me to let it rip when I feel like it--the two work hand in hand. One of the many interesting paradoxes and surprises of the writing process.
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