Do yourself a favour: waste some time

As I lost all self-control in the buffet room of the hotel, this quote came to mind: “To win back my youth, Gerald, there is nothing I wouldn’t do—except take exercise, get up early, or be a useful member of society.” From A Woman of No Importance, Oscar Wilde.  

But ironically, many of my best ideas for writing come while I’m wasting time: i.e. noshing, napping, or watching a dumb show. 

On a day of writing, I also like to putter around the house or yard on occasion. It gets me out of my head, and I (usually) enjoy immediate rewards. Recently, I just kept puttering and puttering, feeling badly for not sitting at the desk. Then the key to book 2 dropped into my brain. The key was simple but I had been overthinking all the characters and plot.

I believed I was wasting time but my mind became rested. And then I got my focus. WHOOP, WHOOP! 

So, after lolling about that hotel for three days and keeping my face in the buffet trough (slapping three pounds of carbs, carbs, all those beautiful carbs on my waist)—I came home ready to rock (and roll). 

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“Other than the physical act of putting pen to paper, I can’t think of another more important job duty of the writer than to stare wistfully out a window.” Terri Guillemets

“I realized I was officially a professional writer when all my plans began with ‘drink coffee’ and ended with ‘take a nap.‘” Cassandra Duffy

“The best time for planning a book is while you’re doing the dishes.” Agatha Christie