Brrrr... by Susan Barclay

As I write this, we're in the midst of another January cold snap. The urge to hibernate is strong, but since I have a part-time job outside the home and am part of a car-pool for getting my son to school, it's not an option. If I had my 'druthers', I'd be somewhere warm, soaking up the sun. Instead I find myself surfing the net, looking for inexpensive trips south, knowing I can't possibly go anywhere before the end of April. And even then, not somewhere far away.

Work on my writing progresses well. I blog regularly and tweet often. At the end of November I reread my WIP and wrote the pivotal scene. I've since gone back to the beginning for revisions and am all the way up to chapter four. Considering how much my writing has improved since I began my novel (ten years ago, cough, cough), the reworking of it is a pleasure and will no doubt provide a better experience for future readers.

It's true, while I haven't shut myself away, my novel has enjoyed lengthy periods of hibernation. I started off strong, but then hit a certain point in the plot; let's call it a cold spell. I knew where things were going to end up; I just didn't know how I was going to get there. So I wrapped it in blankets and focused on other projects, including picture books, short stories and personal experience pieces. From time to time I'd hit on an idea, pull back the covers of my novel, try out some thoughts, and put it to bed again.

You see, hibernation isn't just good for bears, skunks and other animals. It can also be good for your writing. Much like a nap refreshes and restores, a writing break gives your brain a chance to percolate and drum up new, or better, material. When your imagination wakes up like this, you're back on a roll. And how exciting and adrenalin-pumping is that?!

Don't be afraid of putting your work to sleep for a while. It's not going anywhere. It'll be there when you're ready to get back to it, and no doubt better than it was before.

Now I think I'll go back to sleep for a while. Baby, it's cold outside!

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For more of my writing, please visit my website at www.susan-barclay.ca

Hibernation--A Good Thing Or A Bad Thing by Ruth Sakstad

I ended up taking an unplanned hibernation from writing during the last week of December and the first few weeks in January due to the stomach flu. This is my idea of a hibernation being a bad thing.

I don’t recall too many times in my life when I was too weak to pick up a pen and write, but that is what happened. Sometimes I couldn’t even think clearly. During part of this imposed hibernation, I was afraid I might never be able to pick up a pen and write again. I hated those thoughts. But I must admit they were there.

There are good types of hibernation, like when a word (like a wheat seed) is planted in my heart but it takes time to germinate before it becomes an article or a novel. These are exciting hibernation times because I know there will be a good harvest. I just need to remember that the seed needs to stay where it is and not keep digging it up to see if it is ready yet.

I am glad to say my bad hibernation period is now over and I am finding myself free to write again. This fills my heart with joy because I believe God has called me to write.

May your times of bad hibernation where you are unable to write be short and far between. And may your times of good hibernation be fruitful and bring you joy.

Hibernate to or Hibernate from - Connie Inglis

To Hibernate (from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary):

1. to pass the winter in a torpid or resting state
2. to be or become inactive or dormant 

Do you ever feel the need or desire to hibernate from your writing--to become inactive and dormant?  With all the Christmas and New Year's activities this past month, I feel like the opposite has been true. While I love the holidays, I also do like returning to routine and writing calls me back like a long-lost friend.  However, it is also true that even in routine I get pulled in different directions and writing gets put on the back burner more often than I care to admit. And thus I must fight to be able to hibernate "to" writing rather than hibernate "from" writing. Is there anyone else out there that has this same dilemma?

Julia Cameron's book, The Right to Write, has some excellent thoughts and exercises for writers. I recently read the chapter entitled, "Loneliness" and felt it spoke to this "hibernation" subject. Here's a quote from the beginning of the chapter:

"So much has been written about the loneliness of the writer's lot that it feels like heresy to report the truth as I know it: in my experience, not writing is a lonely business. The minute I let myself write, everything else falls into balance. If I get a dose of writing in my day, then I can actually socialize with a clear conscience." 

Her words got me thinking--maybe my issue is that I'm NOT writing and thus easily pulled into other things, things that sometimes are of no value. Part of my problem is that I feel like I need a big chunk of time in order to write, which isn't true. Half an hour here, 15 minutes there. Even if it's just a quick writing exercise, it's still writing. When I've done this is the past, it rejuvenates and refreshes me and yet I seem to easily forget that. Needless to say, I am still working through all this. 

Cameron also goes on to say that writing is a "balm for loneliness"--that it connects us to ourselves and then to others. I would agree but I would also like to add to that. As a follower of Jesus, I also believe it connects us to God. He is our Creator and He created us to write. He put in us this desire, this need, this "gift" (If I may say) to write. So when we write, we are glorifying God and praising Him for the way He made us. 

THAT'S the right perspective--and THAT'S the way I need to view writing.