I was lucky enough to have been travelling the coast of France a while ago and was a little concerned about managing to keep up with my writing, marketing and work commitments whilst moving around. I needed wifi to post support for some wonderful authors I know and also run my networking hour on Twitter, which often takes at least a few hours to run. I did manage to schedule some of my work tweets, but although I love technology, I don’t automate too much, as I like to talk to people myself.
I found a wifi hotspot and every time I need to post, I balanced my computer on my knee at a slight angle, as this seemed the only way that the reception would work. My phone was my back up, but my children had kindly broken it into three pieces the day before we set off on our travels. Hence lots of tears and sullen faces – from me, not the children! ‘It was an accident and anyone could have broken it,’ I was told, by two small faces covered with jam.
I often start one of my books by writing the beginning by hand, then follow with a typed story as it progresses in my mind. I love the freedom of a plain sheet of paper gradually filled with my squiggled and often messier than the children’s handwriting. It was actually quite liberating to not be checking my phone whilst away, not updating emails or typing on my keyboard. I did have to do some work, even though we were on holiday, as I run my own businesses and the people I work with were on holiday too. I read an article recently which said that writing uses a different part of the brain to typing on a keyboard and can unlock different creative aspects of your writing. Another article said that constantly using our phones or staring at computer screens can agitate us and encourage us to loose the ability to relax and think clearly. Either way, I am sticking to writing by hand in my notebooks, but I still love my Mac computer and keyboard and the different creativity it brings. I think life is all about finding a balance and if possible, enjoying what you do. If that isn’t possible, then maybe try to carve out a little time for yourself each day, to do what you do enjoy.
Photo Credit: Copyright: feellife
Stock photo ID:27998050
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