The Top Five Thanksgiving Day Writing Tips
By Heather Webb | November 23, 2017 |
Today you wake up, put the coffee on, and think of the long, luxurious weekend of eating and family time and days off from work. It’s Thanksgiving morning, and you couldn’t be happier about it. But as you go about your morning, you start to hear this niggling voice in your ear and your day begins to shape a little differently than you had hoped. The problem is, you’re:
- Thinking about writing
- Feeling guilty you’re not writing
- Cooking a lot
- Thinking about the pile of unwritten words that are banging around in your head
- Eating too much
WHAT? You’re not writing! You feel unsettled and chastise yourself for each moment you spend away from the keyboard. You have trouble enjoying yourself in the moment. Why is this? Is it because you’re behind your deadlines, or have too much to do? Perhaps it’s the Muse, poking at you, prodding you, begging you to get your butt-in-chair. Maybe you don’t know how to just TAKE A DARN BREAK.
(Or maybe it’s just the restless, kinetic energy that comes with being a creative.)
But on this Thanksgiving Day, I entreat you to—instead—do the following:
- Give thanks for the good that writing brings to your life
- Cook a lot
- Live in the present. Our experiences make excellent fodder for stories, after all, so gather them like pearls
- Eat too much
- Relish the richness that comes with being a part of the Writer Unboxed community
I give thanks for all of you, my comrades in arms—my inspiration—and my friends. I wish you all the warmest, brightest of holidays, no matter what form that takes.
And you had better get back to the writing tomorrow!
Heather Webb is the USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of historical fiction. As a freelance editor and an adjunct in a MFA in Creative Writing program, Heather has helped many writers sign with agents and go on to sell at market. When not writing, she feeds her cookbook addiction, geeks out on history and pop culture, and looks for excuses to head to the other side of the world. To date, her books have been translated to seventeen languages.
Happy Thanksgiving, Heather, Take a day off from writing.
Haha! I did! And I’m fighting the guilt… Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving, Heather. I, too, am grateful to be a part of this supportive WU tribe.
Now, please pass the pie.
What kind would you like? Pecan, Dutch apple, or lemon tart? Happy Thanksgiving!
I’ll join you in being grateful for all of the good that writing has brought to me. When I embarked on this journey I never would’ve guessed at the wonderful friendship writing would add to my life. It’s right at the top of that list of good things. Wishing you a blessed holiday, my friend. Happy Thanksgiving, WU!
Heather, I don’t know how you got into my kitchen or my head today, but there it is. Thanks for this. Happy TG to you too.
Barbara, you’re response made me laugh. I’m right there with you. I hope you’re enjoying your holiday!
Same here, Vaughn. I treasure my writer friends so, so much. We’re an odd bunch that really only understand each other. Ha! Happy Thanksgiving, friend. I treasure you!
I get to grab three hours at the keyboard before I have to cook. I’m not hosting today and I’m grateful for this luxury. In counting my blessings, I’m finding that right along with family, good health, and the awesomeness of simply being alive, comes my connection to other writers. You guys. This community. Because of you all, I’m not alone when I suffer, nor am I alone when I have a victory. By sharing your ups and down, you validate mine and make me feel supported. There is no greater feeling! So thank you, every single one of you, and have a safe and wonderful thanksgiving.
I feel exactly the same way, Susan. All.of my victories and trials have so much more meaning beacsue of you all. Happy Thanksgiving!
Heather, yes, all that, squared. And pie, glorious pie.
So much pie! My stomach hurts…
Happy Thanksgiving, my American friends. Those of us in the rest of the universe will carry on as per usual, with perhaps the addition of sympathetic turkey-itis.
Well, I’ll save a plate loaded with goodies for you! I hope your week is full of lots of great words.
Happy Thanksgiving to all, along with the expectation that we will all experience such progress in our writing (however we assess progress) that our thanks will have extra zest next year!
Happy writing!
I’m thankful for all the people who’ve come into my life through writing–writing practice friends, critique group, writers and advisers I’ve met online, and civilians who listen while I talk about my work (even though they’re not much interested in the topic). I’m not cooking today–my husband and I tossed tradition and went to an Indian restaurant–so I’ll write. A blog post will satisfy the need. Thanks to all at Writer Unboxed for continued aid and comfort.
Indian sounds divine. Happy day of thanks, all the same! And happy writing
It may be Thanksgiving, but this morning, like every other morning the past 4+ years, after I started the coffee I opened my laptop and went straight to WU for that jolt of energy caffeine alone can’t provide. I’ve finished my writing for today, but before I close the laptop and join my children and grandchildren for the rest of the day, I want everyone at WU to know how thankful I am for this community.
I used to be one of those people who imagined writers as solitary individuals with a tendency toward shyness; a bit eccentric from preferring the world in their head to the “real” world, and inclined to be cranky from not living a “normal” life. What a different world I discovered when my internet browsing fingers stumbled across WU!
The first surprise was that interspersed with all the writing advice were glimpses into writers’ personal lives. It may sound odd, but reading about spouses, children, parents, pets, illness, housework, travels, jobs, etc. was a little jarring at first. Imaging a writer diapering a baby, being stuck in traffic, grocery shopping, and all the million other mundane things that are the stuff of ordinary lives created visions of writers far different from the ones in my head. Intellectually, of course, I knew better, I just never really thought about it. Until a few years ago, the writers I had imagined as a child were still the images that came to mind.
Here, at WU, I discovered a community that’s anything but solitary. I’ve met (in an electronic way) a chatty, gregarious group who are passionate, enthusiastic, opinionated, wise, funny, kind, and, most of all, generous, sharing their time and knowledge as well as their love of stories.
Thanks to WU, I appreciate writers in a way I never did before. While the work is solitary, the living is not. Happy Thanksgiving to you all!
What a lovely, thoughtful comment, CK. Thanks so much for your insights. I’m so glad you’re a part of this wonderful community. Have a happy Thanksgiving