Summertime and the
Writing is Easy
By Christina Katz
Call it research, call it revelry, call it what you will. Here are twenty-one
ways to refuel your inner writer while relaxing this summer.
1) Attend a midsummer night's performance (preferably outdoors). Ever thought
about penning a play? What might it be about? Will it be tragic, comical,
historical or tragic-comical-historical? Sketch a few themes in your journal.
2) Your ideas could be writ large with sidewalk chalk. This is fun on the
weekends, when large, black parking lots are out of use. Go early or late to
avoid harsh sun and write a giant ode to whatever strikes your fancy. Smile when
you think of those sleepy workers driving in on Monday morning.
3) Move your writing group outdoors. Under a shady tree, inside a picnic
pavilion or even sitting in the surf are all brain-altering possibilities. Want
to form a writing group? An e-mail invitation to your closest writer-friends
will help you get started.
4) Can you say "roadtrip"? Now subtract the car. How far can you go on bike or
on foot? Pack a backpack with your journal, a pen, water, and some snacks, and
head for your favorite secluded spot. In her book, Living Out Loud, Keri
Smith calls this taking a mini-vacation.
5) Attend or daydream about a writers’ conference. I once had the gumption to
attend Breadloaf Writers Conference in Middlebury, VT (http://www.middlebury.edu/blwc)
where many a writer (known and unknown) got tipsy and frolicked in the fields
under the full moon all night long. For a listing of writers' conferences check
out ShawGuides, Inc. (http://writing.shawguides.com)
6) Glub, glub, glub, fun in the tub with colorful bath crayons. Some afternoons,
it's too hot to do anything but sit in a nice, cool tub and compose some silly
ditties on the bathtub walls. If you need inspiration there's always the Beach
Boys, the soundtrack from "Grease," or Bruce Springsteen to get you going.
7) Go to a carnival or state fair. Imagine what life might be like from the
unique point of view of a traveling carnival employee. Give yourself fifteen
minutes and write about what their typical day is like from sun up to sun down.
Ready, set, write!
8) Easy, breezy summer reads-- here are three from my shelf: Writing Down the Bones, Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg,
How Much Joy Can You Stand? How to Push Past Your Fears and Create Your
Dreams by Suzanne Falter Barns, and Inspiration Sandwich by SARK.Visit your favorite local used bookstore to find inexpensive copies.
9) "Exultation" is a good summer word. According to Webster's Eleventh Edition
Collegiate Dictionary it means the state of being filled with or expressing
great joy or triumph. Does that mean anything to you? If so, please wax poetic.
10) Float your ideas into existence in an inner tube, on an inflatable raft or
simply on your back. Don't even try to write them down-- just drift.
11) Pack your writer's backpack and keep it by the door so you'll be ready to
turn reporter at a moment's notice. Include your camera (digital and/or 35 mm),
your hand-held tape recorder, a hard-back note pad, and a few pens and pencils.
You'll be ready to convert that family vacation into cash in next year's travel
and leisure section.
12) Loosen your noodle by doodling. My husband is a whiz at turning stress loose
onto his sketch pad until it maps a path to a quieter state of mind. I've tried
it, and I must say, it works nicely. Next time the stressman cometh, give your
pencil a whirl on the wide-open page.
13) Sports anyone? Do you putt, trot, cast or row? If you've got game, others
may be interested in what you know. High school media specialist Cathy Belben
has turned her passion for biking into multiple articles for various audiences
and you can, too. Start with what you know and then just go, go, go.
14) A soapbox to stand on. Got something to say about the local, national or
international political climate? Get it off your chest by submitting your views
to your local op-ed page. Let's all flex our freedom of speech this fourth of
July.
15) What are your top five summer movies? Can you string them together and
create an interesting read? Link them to your hometown, chick flicks or whatever
tickles your fancy.
16) The great outdoors. Whether you climb Everest or simply stroll down the
shore, editors love writers who write about the outdoors and will pay you for
it. Got ideas? Think not just summer, but fall, winter, and spring, and then
pitch your local papers.
17) Give it away, give it away, give it away now. The holidays aren't the only
season for giving. What are you bursting with? Donate that extra furniture,
share those summer berries, build a self-serve flower stand and be creative with
the proceeds, then write about your experience.
18) Summer reading, had me a blast, summer reading, happened so fast. I just
finished The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown and I highly recommend it. Read
it twice, once for pleasure and the second time as a writer. What do you notice
about how the book is written? Take notes and then outline your own bestseller.
19) Need a little summer serendipity? Jump start yours at
Bookcrossing.com, "a global book club that crosses time and space."
My code name is bookloverpie. (Don't ask me where that came from because I do
not know.) Set your books free; it's frivolous and fun and that's what summer is
all about.
20) Create a writer's memory book: This is a compilation of all of your
nonprofessional writing achievements. For me, that's the first poem I ever
wrote, the book I made in second grade, the copy of my high school literary
magazine I still treasure. What writer memorabilia have you stashed away that
might inspire you today? Start by gathering ephemera in one place (like a box
or drawer) and then proudly display it from there.
21) Update your portfolio: I enjoy doing this because it gives me pause to
notice the organic nature of my professional path. Four years ago, I set out to
write articles professionally, but realized that this path was isolating for a
social butterfly like me. So, I've branched out in interesting directions, like
teaching, volunteering for my local writing organization, and interviewing. What
do you notice about your writing path?
Just because summer is coming, it's not time to stop writing. The road to
increased productivity is paved with ease. If we relax and have fun, the writing
will be breezy.
Christina Katz has published over seventy-five articles in national, regional
and online magazines and newspapers. She teaches "Writing and Publishing
Nonfiction Articles" and publicizes her students' success stories in "Writers on
the Rise," a free monthly e-mail newsletter. For more information, visit
http://www.christinakatz.com.
