Dealing With Burnout

As writers, it’s not uncommon for us to deal with that one common enemy—burnout. I have experienced this multiple times, especially after writing for longer periods of time, such as during Crazy Writing Week. And every time burnout hits me, it can be hard to find the motivation to pick up my pen, or type away at the keyboard.

But we can’t let burnout win.

If we do, it will swallow us whole until we’re too lazy to write anymore, or ideas just don’t flow. Burnout is an enemy, and writers are the ones in its path.

But, I have a secret: we can overcome burnout. We can defeat the dragon.

We can defeat the dragon.

1. So… burnout. What is it?

Burnout is when you’ve been writing for a while, and you get tired/overwhelmed/just not motivated, causing you to stash away your writing and not have the motivation to work on your WIP. Generally, this happens (for me at least) when I only write a few paragraphs/few hundred words each day then suddenly get a HUGE burst of inspiration and write write write. Every chance I get. All day, sometimes, which is kinda rare—that usually happens to me during CWW. So, the result is, you're tired, cranky, and have no motivation whatsoever to work on your WIP.

That, my dear friend, is burnout.

I find that it happens to most people who only dabble in writing a few times a day/week/month, then suddenly write hundreds of words in a short amount of time. They then get exhausted and discouraged, resulting in burnout.

2. How I Deal With It

The most simple thing is to take a break. Go for a walk. Then, when you’re ready, take up your pen and face that dragon. It’ll be hard, but hey—it’s not impossible. Burnout is just another obstacle in our paths, and we. Can. Face. It.

You can even start writing a few paragraphs/few hundred words a day, whatever you’re comfortable with. Even on those hard days when writing just seems like another chore, another thing to get done, keep writing. Because consistency is key, and by making writing a daily habit, you’ll find that burnout is easier to overcome. Because every dragon can be conquered 😉

So take up your pen and write. Get out your keyboard. Look at a list of writing prompts to get your head flowing with ideas again. But don’t rush into it. Take it slowly at first, as though you’re healing a wound—which, in a way, you are. An example of this is that burnout is an infection (which it’s not, but you get my point), and by healing the wound, we block the infection from entering. Sure, it may come back, but not if we’re careful and keep that wound closed. Keep the burnout away.

Conclusion

That’s all we have for today! Remember, burnout is just another obstacle in our paths, and we can conquer it. For some people, it may be easy—for others, not. But there’s an army of writers out there, wielding their pens and conquering writer's block. Conquering burnout. Training themselves so that when burnout hits, they can fight back.

And win.

I believe in you, friend. I believe that you have it in you to overcome burnout. To defeat that dragon.

I believe in you.

And I believe that you can do this.

~*~

What did y’all think? How do you deal with burnout? Is there a certain method you use? Let me know in the comments below!

Until next time,

~Maya