And Rest... by Natasha Woodcraft

If you’re reading this post on 20th June, then I’m probably on my way to, or at, a writer’s retreat (The ‘Writing Kingdom Stories’ retreat Joy Margetts has mentioned in her posts.)

I’d already started writing this blog when I noticed Andrew Chamberlain’s interesting Facebook post on carving out time for writing, and the guilt surrounding that, when we have so many other demands on our time. I feel the tension too. I tend to find myself prioritising the immediate, the paid and the needed. How do we justify and protect our writing time? 

It can be even harder to carve out time to rest. Everyone thinks rest is a good idea. Very few people I’ve met are good at practising it. Some writers seem to throw books out at an alarmingly rapid rate. It makes me wonder whether rest is something we’re prioritising even less than writing? Because for me, rest is part of the writing process. But it can be especially hard when you get the, ‘So, when is your next book out?’ comments, when you’ve decided it needs time to sit, as mine does right now (more about that next month.)

I find it generally hard to stop. ‘I’ll rest after I’ve…’ is a constant refrain. Or, ‘I’ve just got to do this first…’ I’m not good at multitasking either, and trying to live simultaneously in the real world and the world I’ve created can be problematic. As life in a busy household ploughs on with no notion of the storyline quandaries plaguing my mind, socks go in the wrong wash, casseroles burn on the bottom of the pan and cats start chewing my toes at 10pm because I forgot to give them their tea.

Usually it takes a kind rebuke from my husband to get me to stop, or an illness. Yet rest is completely essential, isn’t it? Rest allows our minds space to process. After rest, we are more productive. In rest, we see, learn and hear things from God that we might miss if we keep rushing through and pushing on. Building rest into my writing timeline doesn’t just prevent burnout but gives the manuscript space to breathe, and God space to speak.

God could have created us with the ability to work all the time. He could have created a six-day week. He could have left out the bits about sleep, sabbaths and festivals. Yet, he chose to require rest. Hmmm, biblical rest and remembrance. They go hand in hand, don’t they? We rest to remember: remember his creative works, remember his past goodness, remember his daily provision, remember the freedom won.

Hopefully, I’ll be resting when you read this. Though it is a writing retreat, I intend to do more ‘retreat’ than writing. And, if the retreat is anything like last year, I will be remembering and dwelling in God’s goodness.

If I have inclination though, having now received feedback from my alpha readers, I’ll take my epic WIP to God and spend time asking him what he wants me to cut and edit. Space to do that without worrying about mouths I must feed, clothes I must wash and accounts I must do is precious. Perhaps I can process the feedback without burning any casseroles. But, I suspect it will take me far longer than 4 days away. And I suspect there will be a reason for that and later, I can praise God for it. If I can force myself to rest for long enough.

Natasha Woodcraft lives in a slightly crumbling farmhouse in Lincolnshire with her husband, 4 sons and a menagerie of animals. She believes stories have power to communicate deep truth and transform lives. Her published novels, The Wanderer Scorned & The Wanderer Reborn, explore God’s redemptive purposes for messy people by reimagining the tale of Cain & Abel. Also a songwriter, Natasha peppers her emotional prose with poetry and song.

Photos courtesy of Edoardo Tommasini, Ketut Subiyanto and Büşranur Aydın at pexels.com