Mental Exercise: Celebration

One of the biggest hurdles to long writing projects is the mental game. I want to spend a few weeks talking about a few of the mental exercises that help me get through longer projects.

Those of you that know me well will have expected something on celebration. I often champion celebration as a thing to which people are entitled. I think of it as a way to mark occasions, to close some chapters, to open new ones. During the writing process, I find them invaluable because they help me stay motivated.

While I am a fan of big celebrations for big projects – a party for tenure, a book launch – I am also a fan of small quieter celebrations that are meaningful for the writer. When I complete a section or a chapter or a poem or do something difficult, I use these celebrations to mark the occasion and to allow me to clear my mind.

As a faculty coach, my experience tells me that more often people do not begrudge celebrations, but rather find it difficult to think of celebrations as useful or doable. They don’t have ideas about celebrations beyond food. Here are a few brief anecdotes.

When I sent in a few poetry submissions, I lit a candle and spent thirty minutes listening to music and drinking tea.

When I completed a hard-won first draft, I made up my face (I mean a full beat) and went nowhere.

After I finished marking papers, I made myself fajitas.

After I completed a month’s worth of new poems, I bought myself a new notebook.

On Fridays, I like to soak my feet with bath bombs and put on a sheet mask.

Some of these sound like simple self-care and they are. I think the difference for me is the intention. Self-care can sometimes be rote and for folks with disabilities the self-care is mandatory and not always escapist or fun. In these moments I am affirming that I did something difficult for me, even if it is a part of the job.

What celebration do you have planned for yourself?