Wednesday, October 3, 2012

It Is SO Fall... Or Is It?

Today's Road Trip Wednesday asks:

October!! It is SO fall! How does your writing (place, time, inspiration, etc) change with the seasons?

First of all, is it really FALL? Because look at the view in my backyard right now: *sobs*


Crappy weather aside, let's get to the question.

So I could pretend to be a diligent little writer who never ever takes a break from writing, who's writing doesn't change with the seasons because I am so scheduled and so on all the time.

Wrong-o.

Actually, I am a very scheduled person. But this past summer I kind of let my whole schedule slide a bit. And I was okay with it. Summer meant an extra hour or two to sleep in. It meant spending lots of time outside. Summer was beach days and game days and spending lots of time with my kids doing what they wanted instead of what I wanted. This past summer meant no writing whatsoever.

My writing definitely picks up in the fall, slacker summer or not. Two of the three manuscripts I've written I wrote in the fall. (The third was a sequel and lower on my priority list, so I worked on it here and there, in between revisions and during querying and whenever inspiration hit.) As soon as school started this year, I got right back on schedule, carving out about 3 hours every afternoon for my writing/revisions.

Usually my writing slows down around Christmas time because, well heck it's Christmas and I'm too busy reading or watching Christmas movies in front of the fireplace and beside the Christmas tree. It picks up again with January resolutions and I usually stay pretty consistent until... summer hits again.

So there you have it: I'm a slacker during the holidays- how unoriginal. What about you? Does your writing change with the seasons?

9 comments:

  1. Snow?! Oh man, I feel bad for you. It's chilly here which is just perfect for sweater season. It's funny becasue this year I've been dragging my feet a lot (I blame it on pregnancy) but now that fall is here and NaNoWriMo is next month I'm pumped to start writing again. Who knows I might have two novels written by the end of November :)

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  2. Eeek, nice snow. As a Canadian, I can emphasize. ;-)

    As a non-writer, I don't know if the seasons would affect my writing. I feel that the setting would possibly be influenced, but not necessarily when I write.

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  3. Snow! My mother-in-law would be in heaven, she loves snow, it makes her happy. I definitely write more during the fall and winter than summer because of vacations and family time and what-not.

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  4. Snow? ALREADY! OMG!
    I think it'll be at least another month before it start snowing here.
    I'm like you. My writing slows down around Christmas because of all the family scheduling and fun, but that's it. The rest of the year, it's all the same ;)

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  5. It's only just October and you're getting snow?! We're still struggling to remember it's not supposed to be 80F! I would like some snow this year. A nice coating for a few days, then gone. Nothing that would impede traffic or be a major nuisance. Just a nice reminder that we can have seasons in their place in NC. :)

    But my writing doesn't change with the seasons. It might be nice to have a productive season... then I might be more productive! :)

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  6. Also a summer and holiday slacker, so fall is a great time for me to be productive.
    SNOW?! Already?! I'm not ready for winter!

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  7. Ah! Snow! I'm currently in Saskatchewan, but I know Red Deer (where we live) was calling for flurries. So not ready for that. Especially since up until a day ago it was summer weather. Gotta love Western Canada...

    I'm definitely affected by the changing seasons, though. I find it tough to get motivated when it's dark out until 8am and after 5pm. Also, writing a summer story in the winter is not overly easy for me. As long as I stick to a schedule/routine, I find that I can overcome some of these challenges, thankfully. :)

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  8. I hate early snow. My writing is a constant surge on my brain, but definitely harder to focus on when it's gorgeous weather outside, or when the ocean calls my name.

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  9. AH! So far the scariest Halloween picture I've seen. Snow already??? Must be a trick. Certainly no treat!

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