By the time you read this post, I’ll be in the air to parts unknown for an extended stay in a new culture.

That means wonderful moments of adventure and fascination. But it also means other things. Isolation, missing my family with everything in me, new writing habits, and fear of a new way of doing things.

It’s that fear I want to focus on.

As writers we are typically solitary creatures. Even in a crowd most of us feel alone. Unsure. In writing, we sometimes rely on particular habits to get us through that next book.

And that brings me to today’s post…what happens when the way you’ve always done things can’t be done that way anymore?

Ever know a guy who wouldn’t wash his socks because his team was on a winning streak? Someone with a lucky jacket or hat? A certain habit they have before (or after) a big event?

Hygiene issues aside (LOL), most traditions/habits are harmless in nature. But what happens when, instead of increasing your creativity, these habits stifle it?

If you write well in chaos and are suddenly thrust in the midst of silence, can you still write? If you want to make deadline, you’d better.

What if you work full time and suddenly find yourself without a job? You were used to having some time during the day in which you weren’t writing, weren’t in the chaos (or silence) of homelife, had to carve out time for writing and had a somewhat steady income. Now you’re at home. You should be able to write all day long now, right? Only if you’re interested in burnout. Or the opposite. You suddenly had to get a job outside your writing career so you have to learn to balance the new drains on your time and energy while still maintaining the break-neck pace you were accustomed to. Only if you’re interested in a nervous breakdown. Do you stop writing because your conditions change?

I have to say no (or else I’m in trouble LOL!).

When it hits you at once, you’ll have to give yourself time to get your bearings again. Does that mean you stop writing? No. Write every day, even if it’s just a sentence. Or a word. Or a thought. Get something down on paper to prevent your mind from shying away from writing. You may not be able to produce the same amount of word output as before, but you’re outputting something. And in the chaos of change, that’s the important thing. Writing should be that calm in the storm, the security blanket you wrap around you to keep your sanity.

I’ve got a netbook and a used alphasmart that says I can write anywhere. There are headphones with a music list specific to my needs so I can focus on the words I’m typing and the mood I need to create to write it. What have you armed yourself with to prevent chaos from destroying your writing?

I have a challenge for you. If you are used to writing in a specific place at a specific time, change it up one day a week. Write in a different room, by hand if necessary, or a different time. A new location. With music if you’re used to silence or without if you’re used to it.

Why do this? Why mess with a routine or a comfort zone? Your brain is affected by training. If you train the creative side of your mind to continue working no matter what happens, you may find that in the midst of chaos…you might just win after all.

Dawn Montgomery
http://www.dawnmontgomery.com/blog
http://twitter.com/Dawn_Montgomery