Writer's Hangover--How I Cope

Now I know some of you know about writer's block. I got asked about it today at the gym and I had to correct them. I'm not suffering from writer's block. I have a writer's hang over. For those of you who've never experienced it, it's much like I understand a regular hangover is, complete with messed up digestive track and splitting headache, except mine doesn't come from the over indulgence of alcohol. I get mine from writing too many hours in a row or too many words in a day.

 

Let me explain. Every person on the planet has a bio-rhythm. For some peak energy comes early in the day, for others it's later. For me, I can write at any time of the day, but the words tend to flow out of me fast and more coherently after about 2PM local time. And when I've got ideas for a novel, they burn. I can write incredibly fast and I write until all of the ideas are gone or I fall asleep at the kitchen table on top of my laptop. Yeah, it's that frenzied, usually in the beginning of the write, the first week or so.

 

Yesterday I hung up the quill just before midnight and I still had words. It was more than annoying because I had already written five thousand words that day and over ten thousand in the past two. I still have ideas pouring from me and I only got to write for about forty-five minutes earlier. I put in nearly a thousand. The words are coming so fast and furious, forget eating or sleeping I just have to let them out. They are radiating, I guess is the best way to describe it and still they are coming. My head buzzes with ideas, the words rush onto the page faster than I can type, faster than I can talk, faster I can handle at some points. When that happens I outline.

 

But it's the after. Just like when you wake up the morning after too much to drink, you do have to pay for writing like beast. That relentless drive  I put to use writing the story has a sharp downfall. Like forgetting to eat, eating only candy, drinking only coffee left my digestive system in protest. Staring at the computer has left me with and rocking headache, eye strain, and bloodshot eyes. Add to that the lack of sleep which has my energy dragging and bags under my eyes and I'm sure I look like a mess. I woke up this morning needing an antidote. I got one.

 

You won't like it, but what worked for me was a good, balanced breakfast and a two hour long workout. Though I have to admit I typed so many words my fingers had a hard time gripping the weights today. The increased blood flow cranked into my brain and cleared out the junk. It also restored my energy to keep going. I'll slow down when I'm out of ideas or next Wednesday. An endurance race for sure.

 

Love,

 

Melanie