Hi y'all,Writing-wise, this week's been a complete write-off.
Have you ever had one of those?
Sure you have. Everyone has 'em.
But even though I've not managed to do any actual writing, looking back, I've still managed to do a bit of "research". Namely, crammed in some reading time and even managed to finished up a couple of library books.
I touted up the books I read this week, and was quite surprised by the number. And immediately felt a bit guilty, because my first thought was that if I'd found a way to put all that reading time toward writing, surely I'd have a quite healthy wordcount by now! And if that was indeed the case, then maybe I've been kidding myself about how busy I've been?!
But I've realized that I haven't actually had any sustained reading time. What I've been doing is snatching a couple of minutes to read here and there. And it's all added up.
Reading while brushing my teeth. It's amazing how meticulous my brushing has become, going over and over each tooth, because I just "have" to keep going until I've finished that really exciting chapter. I really should suggest this technique to my dentist!
Reading while waiting for the pot to boil so that I could put the pasta on. And then going, ah, feck it! Pasta only takes 10 minutes to cook, so I'll just lean up against this handy dandy cupboard here, and read for 8 more minutes... leaving 2 minutes to grate some Romano cheese, grab the jar of pasta sauce, bowls and forks. Who would ever suspect I wasn't completely involved with cooking dinner? ;-)
Reading while waiting to pick up son from Japanese language class. Got in five whole minutes because he was a bit late out -- score! Pity I didn't get the chance to do the same after driving from there to pick daughter up from hockey practice, because she was already waiting for me. But hey, there's always next week.
Reading while eating breakfast. Well, that kinda goes without saying, I reckon. Son, daughter and DH also have a habit of spooning cereal into their ears -- I mean, mouths -- while reading at the breakfast table. Mind you, with DH it's the Economist, which doesn't really count as a "book" but I think we'll give him that one.
Reading in the dentist's waiting room. Why is it that patients are required to ring and advise if they're going to be late -- because, yanno, a dentist is a professional and his time is soooo important -- but when the dentist is running late, no-one rings the patient to tell them their appointment is going to be half an hour or so later than scheduled? Ditto with doctors. And any other professionals one has to book appointments for. Oh well. Lucky I had my book with me, right?
Reading while waiting for my computer to boot up. And then my emails to download. Amazing how relaxed I can be about how freaking long it takes when there's a good book at hand, LOL.
And my personal favorite: reading in the TV ad breaks. I find that when I've been rushing round like a bat out of hell during the day, it's cathartic to zone out in front of the TV for a couple of hours and watch a favorite program like House or The Good Wife, or Flash Forward. But that zone-out time is never wasted when there's a good book to hand. Amazing how much reading you can get done in the 3-minute-30 second (or sometimes 4-minute) ad breaks.
I miss reading in the bath. It's a luxury I haven't indulged in far too long because frankly, our bath at home is small and pokey and it's in the kids' bathroom, so you're always getting interrupted. Cripes, hope my hotel room at the RWNZ conference venue has a bath so I can wallow for half an hour with a good book before getting ready for the evening functions. I tell you, if someone came up with a waterproof eReader so I could read while taking a shower, I'd pay a small fortune for one.
Anyway, anyone feel like sharing some of the weird and wonderful places or circumstances where you manage to snatch extra reading time?
I'm open to suggestions!
:-)
Maree
6 comments:
Maree, I've been known to escape to my bathroom for a long bath just to get some time away from my kids in the evening. I put my Sony reader into a Ziploc bag and hop right in a steaming bubble bath. Very cathartic! I'm a big believer in that authors must be avid readers, so I think it's important that we all make an effort to steal a few hours a week to read something we love.
OMG, a ziploc bag? Brilliant, Kaylea! Now all I need is an eReader.... Hey, I wonder if I could do that with my iPhone? With my luck, the screen is sure to steam up, LOL. Definitely worth a try, though. Oh yeah! *VBG*
I've put myself on a ban from reading until I finish my current wip. It had gotten too bad. The reading was interfering with my writing.
It sounds horrible, but the best place I found to steal time to read is the emergency room. Since my hubby frequent the hospital with his illness, I know that I will have hours before the imbeciles in the ER finish with us. I always stash a book or two in my purse on the way out the door.
PQ - that's not horrible at all! It's essential. I know the only thing that got me through a stint in the waiting room of the ER -- not to mention a week of sleeping on a scungy mattress beside my son's hospital bed afterward -- was a book or two. (That's NZ public hospitals for you. Don't ask!)
Thank goodness for the power of words, which allowed me to lose myself in a fantasy world and recharge a little bit while he was in surgery, and afterward, while he slept. I'd never have made it through his op and all the crap afterward without "losing it" otherwise. Hard to be strong 24/7 when people you love are hurting.
Hugs to you and your DH. And sending positive wellness vibes your way!
I've been known to walk across the main road and down the middle of my street with my head stuck in a book or the latest issue of Heart to Heart - not advisable to anyone living in a city (small country villages only, folks).
Tried reading in the bath until I ruin my only copy of a Lora Leigh favourite when I dropped it by accident into the water.
Seriously though, Maree, it's a good idea to spend time reading and recharge the muse. I know when I struggle at the keyboard and begin resenting it that it's time to find a good book and stay away for a while.
The one time I wish I could read to while away the time would be any time spent as a passenger in a car or train but motion sickness gets to me - what a waste!
Oh, Kylie! I've done the drop a book in the bath thing, too. Worse, it wasn't my book, so I had to buy another brand new copy to give back to the person I'd borrowed it from -- luckily it was still in print. I did manage to dry off all the pages with a hairdryer, tho. And I still have the "bathed" copy, LOL.
My sympathies with the motion sickness frustration. Daughter and I can read in the car, son can't because it makes him feel queasy. He used to get quite snippy, but now he's got an iPod it's not so bad on those long car trips -- phew!
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