People who read this blog regularly know that I’ve had some ups and downs with my writing lately and that I’ve been trying to set some new writing goals. There are quite a few goals that I’ve got in mind (see tomorrow’s post if those goals interest you at all) but the big one is this:
I’d like to take one year off from writing.
I love the work that I do but sometimes I feel like I’m getting burned out. I write literally hundreds of articles per month in order to be able to have enough money to pay my bills. When you write that much, you start to say the same things again and again without meaning to. You start to write without thinking. And you start to find it really difficult to work creatively.
I think that there are a lot of solutions to this problem but the one that makes the most sense to me is to take a sabbatical. I’d like to take a year off to just sit still and think about what it is that I want to do with writing for the rest of my life.
The fact is that I’ve always been a writer. I think I will always be a writer. But I’m not sure what that means. I don’t know if I want to write books or keep blogging or set some other writing goals for ten years down the line. I’m not sure if I want to write full-time forever or if I want to write part-time and then do some other creative work part-time. I may want to go back to school at some point.
The problem is that I don’t feel like I can make those decisions during a time when I’m still writing. I feel like I need to step back and take a breather. I need to put things in perspective. I need time to listen to what my own heart is actually saying without having to also hear the clatter of the keyboard.
So that’s my big goal – to take a one year sabbatical in order to be able to make some solid heartfelt decisions about where I want my writing to go from there.
I won’t actually be doing this for awhile. I have some other writing goals I want to meet first. And I have to put some financial things in place. But what I’m working on is a three-year plan. I’m hoping to work solidly at writing for the next three years and then to take the fourth year off.
What do you other writers out there think about this? Has anyone else taken a sabbatical from their writing career? Did it work for you? Would you like to do it?
Gearing Up for a Sabbatical has 2 Comments
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July 11th, 2009 at 8:41 am
The only time I took a writing sabbatical was when I was married to an abusive man who felt threatened by my writing goals and dreams. He made such a stink about it that I told him I’d never write again. As soon as I said it I felt like a Judas to my own soul.
The sabbatical didn’t last long; I simply learned to hide the fact of my writing from him.
It doesn’t sound as if you are making your decision out of duress, though. I think it’s good to step back, with the amount of writing you do on a regular basis, and give yourself time and space to reassess your needs and goals. There’s nothing in the world wrong with that!
@beauty – Thanks for sharing your story. I’m so glad to hear that you were able to stay true to your own writing voice despite the tough situation. I definitely think any writing sabbatical that someone takes should be their own choice!
July 16th, 2009 at 12:48 pm
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