August 29 2025, 20:23

Summer’s end

I’ve started watching the Met Office YouTube channel, perhaps because I know autumn is coming and I want to prepare for it, or it could be because the more unpredictable weather represents my return to work, big new projects, my daughter starting A-levels, and a new phase in my life.

The summer has been a fascinating experiment in broadening my creative horizons. I don’t want to cede the ground I’ve won to more mundane 9-to-5 pressures. It might be unwise, it might not, but I’m going to try to continue with the writing, reading, guitar practice and swimming lessons in September. I’m not going to take on my usual film challenge in October, which I would be preparing for now. This is a concession.

Amie McNee’s book, We Need Your Art, was a valuable jolt of reason and a reminder that procrastination is fear beneath the surface, and while there have been many valid reasons not to prioritise writing over the last few years, none of them are in play now. She proposes restarting the habit of creating every day by setting the bar so low that it would be embarrassing not to accomplish it. For me, that’s 100 words a day, and I write more, but 100 words is my target. It’s working. I’ve gone back to the beginning of the novel and I’m making it into a functional first draft. In parallel, I’m reading novels (short ones, to keep me motivated) for the fun of it, but also to research structure and voice.

Writing regularly again is a big deal. It’s ironic that doing more diverse projects, not fewer, was the key to unlocking the writing. Guitar and piano use a different part of my brain. Understanding my biology to improve my hip pain is a practical science. Swimming is a physical skill. I think learning fresh skills reminded my of my abilities and potency. I’m a learner by nature. Always have been.

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