By DiAnn Mills
No other time of the year can be more difficult to write than at Christmas. We writers are simply distracted with all the fun and preparations. Besides the season involves creativity, and we simply can’t resist the urge to simply BE in the moment. My excuses race from one exciting activity to the next-
Time
Shopping.
Wrapping gifts.
Baking cookies.
Reading Christmas cards.
Planning Christmas parties.
Attending choir presentations.
Decorating the tree and house.
Viewing my favorite Christmas movies.
Figuring out what to wear to holiday events.
Napping because I’m tired from all the above.
Gotta write.
Gotta write.
Gotta write.
When I’m caught up in the moment, I have but one solution. Time to give a gift to readers and fashion what I do best-emerge a reader in story.
Here are five tips to ensure our writing is completed during the holidays while we enjoy the most wonderful time of the year.
1. Grab our laptops and head to our favorite coffeehouse where music will warm our souls, the scent of coffee will tease our tastebuds, and all the while we add to our word count.
2. Reward ourselves when the temptation to get involved with Christmas preparations threatens to postpone our writing. It’s psychological, but self talk works. “Okay, All American Writer, write the next chapter to your Bestselling Novel and then you can wrap gifts.”
3. Waste not a single moment. When pies, cakes, and cookies, must be baked for guests, writers are prepared. We plant our laptops on the kitchen counter and write while those delicacies are baking.
4. Ride alongs are amazing. What do I mean? While husband or wife drives us to a Christmas event, we can write on our laptops. Some writers use their phones or iPads as a help while in the car. An old-fashioned
5. Place our characters in the middle of a Christmas scene and live our lives vicariously through theirs. After all, that’s what our readers do!
No matter how you fit writing into your life at Christmas, don’t forget the meaning of the season. Embrace the love and joy God’s gift brought to mankind through a wee child.
How do you wade through the tinsel and lights to write during the season?
DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She combines unforgettable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels. DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com.
Comments 0
I have already been to my favourite coffee shop and have written some more of my novel. Nothing better than a coffee and a mince pie to help my imagination!. It’s lovely to get there early morning before the rush begins. I happened to be able to do this today.
Lorraine
Lorraine, When we finally get together, I want the coffee and mincemeat pie! My mother used to say that the only way she could get me to eat meat, was to make mincemeat pie.