Returning to the Writing
A gentle start to a fresh year on the page.
Our first night of New Year Writing Nights was on Wednesday. Pam and Shelby both shared that they’re working on novels. Aysha (who designed the Lonely Victories logo!) joined the group to work on her portfolio and take a stab at outlining a screenplay.
put in the chat that she’s trying The Artist’s Way. So many projects growing under our digital roof. If you haven’t joined already, we’d love to have you.Many folks arrived to our first session and kicked absolute ass. Laura, who was shoveling wood chips all afternoon, showed up and wrote over 800 words. My evening involved refilling my cup: I used my first of twelve New Year Writing Nights to listen to my favorite tarot podcast, and the podcast made me kind of sad, so I journaled about being sad, and then I watched 10 minutes of the Sabrina Carpenter Tiny Desk Concert.
Whether we write hundreds of words or feel more like we’re dawdling, we give ourselves what we need during our writing sessions. Our writing time is where we refill our tanks. Or, if our tanks are full, we spill them onto the page.
For the past two weeks, I haven’t touched my novel. The science people say that when you’re not working on a project actively, your subconscious is still doing work on it. I didn’t really believe that until last week, when I solved a major plot hole with ease while scrubbing dandruff shampoo into my sad, flaky scalp. I was like, um, excusez-moi? You mean I don’t have to wrestle my book to the ground at my desk every day?
I’m returning to the novel on Monday. Right before my two weeks away, I wrote myself a letter to read during my first moments back in Novel Land. The note is gentle and encouraging. It lays out the problems I need to solve and reminds me what I love about this novel so far. It gives me a clear course of action for the weeks ahead. It is a gift I created for Future Hurley. I liked doing this so much that I think I’m going to create a template for you to write your own. More on that soon.
A PLAYLIST FOR EARLY MORNING WRITING 🌝Last month, I shared that I’m retiring my Book Club for Writers. This move was exactly what I needed. It opened brainspace for me to create new offerings that feel more attuned to my writing rhythms in the here and now. I’m announcing the first one, called Write Like a Morning Person, in the newsletter today. Details below the horizontal line.
But before we move onto that, I want to say again: happy new year. Thank you for being here. Thank you for writing. You make this world better by filling blank pages with your truthful words.
WRITE LIKE A MORNING PERSON · MONDAY, JANUARY 20Save the date for Write Like a Morning Person, a morning-long writing retreat on Monday, January 20. Lots of you have the 20th off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, so if you’d like to start your holiday with some writing time, here’s how I’ll be leading it.
5:30-6:45AM EST · GUIDED MORNING PAGES · We’ll begin our day with some journaling. Prompts will be provided, or you can freewrite to your heart’s content.
6:45-7:00AM EST · MEDITATION READING · I’ll read a passage from one of my favorite creativity books, and we’ll take some time to integrate it, setting the tone for the rest of our morning of writing.
7:00-8:00AM EST · EAT YOUR BREAKFAST & WALK YOUR DOG · Or do whatever else it is you need to do before continuing on to our next block of writing. I, personally, will be walking Miss Susan around the neighborhood and wolfing down some oatmeal.
8:00-9:45AM EST · NITTY GRITTY WRITING TIME · Dive into your writing project for one luscious chunk of time.
9:45-10:00AM EST · SHARING & SIGNING OFF · Connect with your fellow morning people in a sharing session. We’ll celebrate our accomplishments before signing off for the rest of the holiday.
HOW TO ATTEND · WRITE LIKE A MORNING PERSON
Write Like a Morning Person is for paid subscribers of Lonely Victories. If you’re not a paid subscriber yet, you can sign up for $5/month, or save 17% and subscribe for the year. More offerings like Write Like a Morning Person are on the way this year! Upgrade your subscription by clicking below, and cancel anytime.
If you’re already a paid subscriber, no sign up is required for this morning writing session! You’ll find the Zoom link below the paywall of today’s newsletter, along with a Google Calendar entry.
Want to come for part of the morning but not all of it? Drop in anytime on the 20th. Mics will be muted upon entry, so you won’t disrupt us by arriving late or leaving early. Hope to see you there!
Warning: morning person energy may be infectious.
Beginning the Artist Way (again) with reckoning with my inner critic in the morning pages. I’ve found that the more I fight back with the voice trying to keep me quiet, the more I can write. Thank you for the group. Looking forward to Wednesday evenings!
I know that you know that I heard "shiny happy writers" in the immaculate & perfect voice of that Goddess of Athens, Kate Pierson. It's an appropriate musical flourish for this new phase of Lonely Victories-ing.