Thursday, June 28, 2007

Retreat and Other Treats

Went to a writing retreat with several ladies from my local RWA chapter last weekend. It was nice. Relaxing. Got the final polishes done on my WIP and wrote a few lines on my next project. Did some reading. Ate too many of Piper's peanut butter blondies. Drank a little wine. (Quite a combination).

Our cabin was outside of Bend at Elk Lake. Nice. New. In the mountains, nestled in a grove of lodgepole pines on the lake. We watched sailboats on the water and a chipmunk scamper across the deck. Went for a couple nice walks. Enjoyed each other's company. Did some reading.

While sitting on the deck with my notebook and highlighter, a humming bird paused to check out my fluttering red sleeve. Maybe it looked like a flower. I felt the tiny bird's wings against my skin. It was a trip highlight.

Little encounters with nature are some of the most inspiring things for my writing, and my soul. I do some of my best problem-solving when I'm up to my wrists in dirt. Besides gardening, taking walks through beautiful, wild, or semi-wild areas also get my creative juices flowing.

What helps you work through writing, or personal problems?

2 comments:

Paty Jager said...

Labor- laborious muscle work that doesn't require a thought. Or monotonous work that doesn't require thought. That's when my mind frees up and I get story ideas or work out scenes for what I'm working on at the moment.

If I'm really stuck I paint(a deck, room, house) or scrub the floor. It leaves my mind idle to wander into the recesses that draw out the creativity.

Danita Cahill said...

Ha! I do housework when I'm angry. Helps me get over it.