Five Ways to Start Fresh
by Rochelle Melander
I hope you realize that every day is a fresh start for you. That every sunrise is a new chapter in your life waiting to be written.”
— Juansen Dizon
Although officially we have a few more weeks of summer, Labor Day tends to mark the unofficial end of the season. In my town, school starts today. Yesterday, the astrologists I follow celebrated the new moon in Virgo, a time for clean slates and fresh starts. It’s a great time to reimagine your work.
As a writing coach, I’m always looking for ways to support my clients in getting work done. I want to help you feel engaged with your work. One way I do that is by helping you find new ways to approach your work.
Here are five ways to start fresh:
Declutter your writing space
I’ve noticed that I write more when I take my laptop to the coffee shop or library. It’s even better when I’m stuck somewhere that I can’t get online. Why? Clutter distracts us. According to a 2011 study by the Princeton University Neuroscience Institute, when you’re working in an environment with a lot of visual stimuli, your brain has difficulty focusing and processing information. The solution? Dump the clutter. Clear out your writing space. Or, write in someone else’s clean space. (Coffee, anyone?)
Brainstorm a whole new project
Sometimes it’s fun to try something new: a different genre, a fresh take, even a new project. This week, take out your brainstorming notebook and imagine new projects or envision new ways of putting your ideas into the world. (If you don’t have a brainstorming notebook, this might be the week to get a new one. I just bought the Zequenz Classic 360) If you’ve always written prose, maybe it’s time to play with poetry? If you’re curious about cats or bugs or growing things, how could you spin that interest into a writing project?
Reimagine an old project
If you’re like most of my clients, you have a few unfinished books hanging out on your hard drive. How could you rescue them from oblivion? Can you imagine writing them in a new way? Maybe you’d like to tell the story from a different point of view or for a whole new audience? Maybe you want to try a new genre—take that literary novel and write a mystery. Or, if you’ve written essays your whole career, why not put them in a book?
Deepen your work
Add a new layer to the work you’re doing now. If you’re writing nonfiction, add an interactive element. Maybe you could insert new stories into your narrative—either by telling your own or interviewing clients. If you’re writing fiction, how could you deepen the narrative? Perhaps you could add a layer to the protagonist’s backstory, create a supporting character, or add a secondary plot line.
Write with others
Stop trying to do this all alone. This time of year, I get the urge to go back to school. Yes, I love learning (and new pens!), but I think it’s really an urge to be connected to others. I’ve continued to hold my writing groups–another way to be connected to others–because they are so beneficial. They provide community, help people get work done, and support writers in solving their writing challenges.
Shameless Plug
I have three (!) writing groups starting this month.
+If you want to join a group that gives you writing prompts, group coaching, and time to write, check out the Writing Accountability Group.
+If you want to join a group that’s more about writing together and meets every week, try the Show Up and Write Writing Circle.
+If you are interested in getting eyes on your work, consider joining the writing goddess group. Email me for details.
Pro tip:
If you join either the Writing Goddesses or the Writing Accountability Group, you can join the Show Up and Write Writing Circle for just $80. Email me for details.
Your turn
It’s a brand new day, a brand new season, and a brand new opportunity for you to write your story. What would starting fresh look like for you right now? How could you bring a fresh start to the work you are doing?
Write Now! Coach Rochelle Melander is an ADHD-trained professional certified coach who has helped hundreds of people write and publish books. She’s available to help you create a plan for your writing project, overcome distraction and procrastination to start and finish your writing, and navigate publishing and marketing your book. Book a private consultation: https://writenowcoach.com/consultation/
