The Value of a Change of Scenery

I’m currently enjoying a change of scenery. My husband works in Dublin and normally commutes from our home in Worcestershire every week. As my son is on a school science trip this week, I’m over in Dublin as well. Hubbie is at work, so I have no excuse not to get on with my edits.

Unfortunately, I’ve been suffering with an eye problem, which means I can’t stare at the computer screen for too long and this has slowed me down tremendously. Since I’ve been in Ireland, I’ve been interspersing editing with visits to the local coffee shop and trips into Dublin.

There are already beautiful Christmas windows in Dublin, so I’ve used these to illustrate this post.

It’s amazing what a change of perspective can do for your manuscript. I now fully understand why writers go to retreats. I’m out of routine, so not bogged down by my normal tasks and thoughts.

I’ve been finding it helpful to stop at a problem point and go out, then the question I need to resolve percolates in the back of my mind and my characters start to communicate with me again. This also means, I’m eager to get back to the screen and write the next bit, with the result that I’m at last making much better progress.

Giving myself space to write/edit without the normal distractions, has allowed me to incorporate new thoughts and the essence of different places into my book too. So, in conclusion, I thoroughly recommend a change of scenery. Wish me luck for the rest of the week, as I want to finish this round of edits before I go home.