Month: June 2011

The official declaration of summer a couple of days ago made me think of the quote that is in the title. Winter was a challenging and sad season for our family, followed by a dreary spring and a wet, cold May that seemed to last far longer than its allotted 31 days. Finally, the sun is shining; more than my weeds seem to be thriving, and it’s summer!

And the sun seems to be shining on my creative life, too. A short email led to my pitching a textbook idea. I finished editing one of my historical romances; the cover is designed, and I’m that much closer to my first ebook. I got two emails last week with offers of writing work. And story ideas are no longer strangers. What took so long?

Healing took so long. Work didn’t come because I couldn’t have handled it well if it did. I needed time to get over a wretched winter, to hunker down with tea and romance novels, to pick up the knitting needles and crochet hook, so I could be whole again and able to do my best work.

Kristi Holl in More Writer’s First Aid – Getting the Writing Done, says it this way: “After prolonged stress, we often are no longer able to unwind. To create, we need a relaxed, ‘loosened’ state of mind … The final task is to coax your creativity out of hiding. It’s not really gone–just merely in hibernation. Often it’s only a matter of changing course, being creative in another area of your life for a time … Each person’s choice will be different.” For Kristi the choice was gardening and quilting–small, “no pressure” projects. For me it was knitting and returning to read some favourite novels.

What do you do to get your creativity out of hibernation?