I’ve recently seen lots of romance writers signing off of social media for a while to give themselves a break—whether it’s a break from posting for a while, or an actual vacation, or just getting rid of distraction so they can sit down and write.
I’m a huge proponent of creatives taking a break every now and then to refill the well. I’ve just come off a week-long editing and social media break, which I try to do once a quarter—the editing break to clear some room for more stories in my head and to get ready to edit again with fresh eyes, and the social media break because coming up with social media content week in and week out is HARD, y’all.
Because our creative time is often stolen moments or not a strict 9-to-5-like schedule, it’s hard to think of time off as really “off.” So if you are the kind of person who takes time off but then that gives you the time to think up other things you could be doing for work—well, for one, I feel you, and for two, I don’t think that’s necessarily bad. You are giving your brain a break, and it’s just filling the space with things you usually don’t have the bandwidth to focus on. Once you clear away that stuff hanging over your head, you free up room to get those creative juices flowing again for your main projects.
(My breaks are generally busy with things like updating my website, stockpiling, and just regular old dreaming of what I’d like to do and things I want to change or improve on, both in my editing practices and my social media. And after this past week off, the Notes app on my phone is now bursting with new ideas that I've come up with in the downtime.)
Let your brain take you where it will, but here are some things you might consider doing on your break (if you're a can't-shut-off-totally person), or when you're just thinking in the spare moments of your day:
Consider your social media footprint right now. Are there platforms you could add or take away? Do you need to be writing blog posts on your website? Does it make sense for you to still be on Facebook now, for instance, or are you getting much more traction on Instagram? Should you add TikTok or Reels to your repertoire if you’ve got the time and brainspace to do it? (There are romance writers absolutely killing the game on TikTok right now, and the field is wide open there.) Or if you’re happy with the platforms that you’re on, analyze how your posts are doing—are you getting enough engagement, or should you be changing up your content to attract more readers?
What kinds of things can you be doing for your writing career? Would a course on writing, productivity, Amazon ads be worth your time? Do you need to refresh your newsletter freebie, or re-cover some of your backlist titles? Should you be getting more involved in the romance community, or reaching out to fellow writers for new critique partners or just for chatting, commiseration, and collaboration? You might want to rethink the things that you’re currently doing for your writing career and seeing if they’re serving you well enough—and if not, it may be time to shake things up a bit. Time to get out of that comfort zone! (I’m doing it too. I think I have to try Reels. I am TERRIFIED. But you aren’t going to grow by staying safe and doing the same things, right?)
Let’s go big-picture and think about your writing career overall and the long-term goals and direction you want to take it. If you’re self-publishing now, do you want to go trad in the future? Is it time to start querying for an agent or to a publisher? Or vice versa—if you’re currently trad, do you want to dip your toe into self-pubbing and go hybrid? If you want to be a full-time writer, what steps will you take to get there and how long will it take you? Do you want to write in a new genre or romance subgenre, and will you need a new pen name for it? Or maybe you might want to take a step back from writing to focus more on your non-writing work or spend more time with your family, or you’re just burnt the hell out—it’s okay to hit pause on your writing career!
Breaks are good and necessary, especially in the middle of a pandemic. Be kind to yourself, and give yourself a break (even if it’s just a few days!) every now and then, so you can continue to create.
Do you schedule in regular breaks for yourself? Are you going to?