YOU’RE A WRITER. And if you’re participating in NaNoWriMo or are just a highly disciplined writer (what’s that look like I wonder??) that means you have goals to slay. LOTS AND LOTS. Stacks of assignments, goals, ambitions, and daily word counts will bear down on you like a pressure cooker of responsibility.

But all that pressure doesn’t turn you into a better writer simmerin’ in a stew of creative juices. Instead, you become a burnt out human seasoned with a dash of sadness and sorrow. And I’m not talkin’ crispy grilled cheese with those crumchy, cheesy edges kinda burnt out. Nah. I’m talkin’ blackened, burnt to a crisp burnt out. 

You are charred to a crisp thanks to physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and UNENDING stress. You feel overwhelmed, emotionally sapped, and unable to meet constant demands. And as a result, you lose interest and lack the motivation to continue your writing journey. (NO THANKY)

Look, kid, If you don’t have your health, you’ve got nothin’. Remember that. I should know, I’ve been battling chronic illness for years now so I know the value of taking my writing journey one day (one step!) at a time and avoiding burnout.

What you’ve got to do is put your writing game in perspective. So, here are 3 ways to avoid burnout while maintaining a healthy perspective on writing.

“Hey no offense but between school, homework, chores, writing, and all my extracurriculars, there’s no way I can take one long luxuriant spa day just for me.”

Woah, friend. I’m not asking you to do that. Look, new age music isn’t my thing either and I prefer cucumbers in my salads- not my eyes. But “me” time isn’t necessarily taking a whole day to pamper yourself and do nothing. “Me” time really means gathering your strength, becoming aware of calm and acknowledging the power you do have in your life, even when everyone and everything seems to be taking it away from you.

You CAN do that through a little thing called deep breathing techniques.

Deep breathing techniques might sound silly but they’re actually h*ckin’ beneficial for you. Deep breathing promotes oxygenation to the bloodstream and organs which is essential for good health. Combined with mindful stretching techniques, deep breathing also promotes focus (something I think us writers could benefit from, yes?) 😉  

I do eight minutes of deep breathing exercises combined with stretching every night before bed and I tell you I sleep 100% better as a result. I also have better stamina for the following day’s tasks.

So how do you do it? Deep breathing can be done anywhere (although a quiet place away from your annoying little sister, your phone/laptop, and your anxious doggo is preferred). 

Here are the three simple steps to lead you to a healthier, clearer mindset through deep breathing:

1. Close your eyes
2. Inhale through the nose for up to seven seconds (gently fill the lower abdomen like there’s a balloon behind your belly button you want to inflate!)
3. Exhale through the mouth for up to 7 seconds (gently drawing the belly button toward your spine)
4. Repeat for five minutes to ten minutes

It’s so simple, right?! You can do this standing up or sitting down. And the idea here is to promote mental and emotional stability, become aware of your own strength, and shoo stress away. Deep breathing restores your body and gives it the peace it needs to take on another day of word counts and novel plotting. And as long as you have five minutes, you can detox through deep breathing.

And if you’re a beginner at this deep breathing thing and want more info on it, check out this article here: Deep breathing techniques for beginners.

UN-PRODUCTIVE?? That is a curse word in my household, Rae! 

I know, I know, I dropped the ‘U’ bomb on ya, but hear me out: your organizational skills combined with your disciplined routine keeps you moving forward and producing nonstop like a well-oiled machine. But guess what? Humans are NOT machines. Humans are humans. That means we need to do something that does not require a judge, a coach, a teacher or a parent hovering over us and grading our results. We just weren’t created to produce ALL THE DANG TIME.

So that means you must take at least ten minutes a day to do something completely unproductive– stupid even! (but hey I don’t mean start a car fire or something, ok buddy?) I mean do something that will make you laugh, smile, or breathe in fresh air (preferably all three).

So what can this unproductive thing be?:

• Playing a non-competitive video game (Minecraft e.g.)
• Painting or drawing (an outlet that keeps you in a creative flow but not a raging river!)
• Playing a board game
• Dancing
• Skipping rocks
• Playing fetch with your doggo
• Laying on your bed with your legs up in the air
• Going for a walk or bike ride
• Drinking a milkshake
• Taking pictures of nature
• Or any other pointless, completely non-trophy based endeavor you can think of!

Doing this gives you permission to break free from the pressure to perform (and you really need that, kiddo.)

Remember that you have your whole life to write a fandom-worthy novel. But you don’t have the rest of your life to be a kid! So make time for it. Participate in non-competitive activities that allow you to do something completely and utterly pointless. It’s the perfect reset button your mind needs to take the writing game head on once again.

Stop trying to be Superman. You can’t carry everything on your shoulders and act like you can take on one more thing because hey why not life’s already hard enough guess I’ll die.

Remember what I said before? You’re a human, not a machine. That means it’s ok to take a deep breath and ask for a little support from friends or family. 

OK before you throw all your excuses at me, do me a favor real quick:

Write down every responsibility you have on a sheet of paper– EVERY SINGLE ONE (including writing your book!)

Now, on a scale from 1-10 (10 highest, 1 lowest) rate them from most important responsibility to least important.

Good.

Now, rate them by importance in your life. That is, importance to YOU, not someone else. Got that?

Ok. So which responsibilities are highest on the priority list? How many responsibilities are a seven or higher on the “importance to you” scale?

Where does writing fall on that list? Is it a seven or higher?

The point here is to help you determine what matters most in your life and how you can get help achieving those primary goals.

If there are some responsibilities that are very high but you have trouble keeping up with, talk to your parent/guardian, teacher or sibling to help you balance this responsibility or even lessen the load. Explain honestly why you could use their help. If there’s a responsibility that you could delegate or request time away from, talk to your list of trustees again and explain honestly why you would appreciate their help.

In this way, you can get the support you need to help accomplish your responsibilities and still have time for breathing AND for writing.

And don’t mistake help for weakness, friend. Logically speaking, you’re doing yourself a disservice if you don’t benefit from the help of friends and family members.

Battling chronic illness has taught me to put away my pride. Letting my guard down was so hard but trusting in my loved ones has only drawn me closer to them and likewise helped me keep going in my writing journey. I wouldn’t even be writing this article if it weren’t for their help and support! 

So there ya go. Don’t be shy, don’t be prideful. Let yo ego go. Ask for help, lighten the load, and avoid burnout!

In conclusion, fellow writers: take your health seriously. You can’t meet your writing goals without it. So, avoid burnout by:

1. Taking “me” time
2. Doing absolutely stupid nonsense
3. Sharing the load

If you do these three things, you’ll stay devoted to your craft and actually finish that novel. And if you’re participating in NaNoWriMo, then it’ll help you achieve your 50,000-word goal! 😉

Wishing you health and happiness, friends! What methods do you like to use to keep yourself from burning out? What stupid or inane thing will you do to keep your mind from going bonkers? Let me know in the comments section! I’d love to celebrate your choices :D.