Avoiding H.A.L.T. Works For Writers Too
August 12, 2008 by Anne Wayman
Filed under Jobs
(www.thegoldenpencil.com)
Yikes! I’ve been working away, editing a book proposal for a client and suddenly, at the start of sample chapter 2, nothing was making any sense at all. And this is a chapter that’s had several drafts. In fact, it’s the chapter the client likes best.
All of a sudden I realized I was hungry – seriously hungry.
Twelve Steppers use the word HALT to remind themselves not to get too Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired. They know that if they’ve got any of these going they are more vulnerable to slipping back into their addiction.
I find HALT also works for me, and I suspect other writers. I don’t know about you, but when my writing is going well, I can loose all track of time. That’s what happened this morning. I grabbed a bit to eat, and you know what, that chapter is pretty good.
Don’t always assume your writing sucks… make sure your in shape to read it with clarity.
Write well and often,
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Anne, you’ve hit the mark with this one. I hadn’t even realised it had a name.
I quite often become so entangled with my writing that I lose track of time – and stuff seems terrible, so I work longer and harder – become more irritable.
One of the problems is I’m also diabetic, so becoming hungry is quite bad for me.
I’m wondering if I ought to set an alarm to remind me to eat!!!
Anthony, an alarm sounds like a great idea to me… a simple time would work too and there are probably ways to get your computer to sound an alarm.
I had not heard that term, but it makes sense.
When I hit a sticky point, I know it’s time to take the dog for a walk. Getting away from the keyboard and doing something that involves forward momentum can work wonders for getting your mind to work through problems. Often you come back and know just how to fix what’s bugging you (or you read it again and realize it doesn’t sound that bad after all!).
love it when I realize it’s pretty good after all ;)