Don't let your writing wilt and wither! by Jane Walters

During the summer holidays, with relatively blank diary pages (hurrah!), today and every alternate Friday heralds as much excitement as I can hope for: it’s brown bin day. For those of you who don’t have the fortune of living in my local district, green bin is for general rubbish, black for recycling and brown is for garden waste. Normally, it’s chock-full but with so little rainfall lately, nothing seems to be growing and I feel so sorry for the plants that are valiantly trying to struggle on that I haven’t given them so much as a tweak with the secateurs. So ingrained is my need to please people that, in an attempt to make the bin men’s job worth their while, I spent ten minutes yesterday pulling up some old poppies and a few weeds. (Here’s an interesting fact for you: in a drought, you can pull a dandelion clean out of the ground. It’s rather satisfying and, when you’ve finished reading this, I suggest you try it.)

With my plants languishing in the heat, I’m aware that I’m taking particular care to water the new hedge I planted in the spring. Those tender specimens won’t survive without me watering them daily and keeping a close eye on them. The more established shrubs aren’t in any danger of dying, though they’re not looking happy...

It all ties in rather beautifully with some thoughts I’ve been having regarding keeping our writing watered, so to speak, and I personally find it refreshing to meet with other writers. On Monday, I had the pleasure of a lovely evening spent eating out with a writer friend. We were able to speak honestly about how it’s all been going, with a pledge to keep supporting each other and collaborate on a Hollywood-busting screenplay. That last bit might have been the carbohydrates talking but it was fun to dream!

Then, yesterday, we held our monthly ACW meeting in the local Christian bookshop – with the special treat of welcoming a potential new member. I came away feeling uplifted and motivated, having enjoyed listening to what the others have been writing and working on a 15-minute writing task.

I wonder which elements of your writing life need protecting or nourishing at the moment? Are you totally new to it all, needing to guard this precious, fledgling gift?

Is there a new project, perhaps barely off the ground?

Or maybe you’ve been writing a long time but you’re starting to droop and the fruit seems smaller?

Whatever the case, I do urge you to seek out ways of getting refreshed and renewed, whether that be in company or simply before God alone. May His living water drench you to your roots.

Jane Walters is vice-chair of ACW and leader of two ACW affiliated writing groups. She leads retreats and workshops and loves seeing writers released into their gifting.

www.janewyattwalters.com

Twitter: @realjanewalters

Insta: @readywritersretreats