I Love to Write Day
Hello friends! Hope this finds you all doing well. I decided to step out of "blog retirement" to share about an important upcoming holiday for writers.
You may already be aware that November 15 is I Love to Write Day. But did you know that 2022 is this fabulous holiday's 20th anniversary?
Author and freelancer John Riddle, founder of this great celebration, had a light bulb moment in 2002 and started a movement to encourage everyone to join in on the fun.
John says,
"My goal for I Love to Write Day is simple: people of all ages are encouraged to write something: a poem, a letter, an essay, start a novel, finish a novel...the possibilities are endless!"
For more I Love to Write Day details, history, and fun facts visit the I Love to Write Day site. You can also connect with John on Facebook and Linkedin, and if you're so inclined, share about I Love to Write Day on your blog or social media. Feel free to use the ILTWD site link and #ilovetowriteday in your posts.
A Special Book to Celebrate
Since celebrating a 20th anniversary is a must, John decided to write the I Love to Write Day Creative Journal. This book is packed full of writing advice and tips to get those creative juices flowing. It contains 30 fun and inspiring challenges as well as contributions from 87 creative experts from around the globe. They include writers, authors, musicians, artists, and photographers who share about their creative journey and/or their favorite creativity tips.
(I'm excited; I had the privilege of being one of the contributors!)
This book was released on November 1, 2022 and reviews are starting to come in. One reviewer called it a “fidget spinner for the creative mind that will inspire you to move from dreaming to doing…more than once!”
For more info on the Creative Journal, visit Amazon.
Speaking of Creative Boosters
What do you do when you're frustrated with your writing or the ideas don't seem to flow? Or maybe I'm the only one who has this happen sometimes?
There are a few things I do to refresh the creative process. Maybe they're your go-to solutions too.
- Take a break - I exercise or go for a walk, get a snack, do laundry, call or text a friend, or watch a movie. It helps to get out of the writing zone and change my perspective.
- Read - In addition to being a great distraction, reading generates ideas, gives opportunity to observe other writing styles and teaches us new things. It takes us places that we otherwise might not go, and that can be such a refreshing change of pace.
- Create - Whether cooking, gardening, home improvement or small decorating projects, or crafts and experiments with my grandsons, it's always nice to feel creative along other avenues.
- Just write - When a deadline looms, I push through to get something down. Easier said than done, right? But it has to happen sometimes. Then I step away for a bit and upon returning, there's something to work with. Usually it's not as horrible as I think, and I can revise and work from there.
What Have You Been Up To?
What does November 2022 find you doing? How have you been? I'm certain that you've all been writing and creating and doing wonderful things, and I would love to hear about it.
Still writing here, primarily creating content for a web designer. Since much of that is in-house, I can't always share. But I do have a bit of advice about couch covers on the Bob Vila site, and a recent article on freelancing at Writers Weekly. Spending more time on LinkedIn lately too, so if you're there and I'm not among your connections, please feel free to connect with me.
What will you be doing for I Love to Write Day? How do you push through those sluggish writing stretches and get creative again? Don't forget to share what you've been up to in the comments!
Happy writing,
Karen
