I don't know what it is, but I've been in such a creative slump. I want to blog and work on the novel and do other creative things, but I mostly find myself reading, playing computer games, or taking a nap. It's not that I don't have ideas, it's just that none of them inspire me enough to get my booty moving.

I'm trying my best not to beat myself up over this unproductive period, and to tell you the truth, I'd like to take a break from information overload. A month away from social media and blogs and everyone else's thoughts, ideas, and opinions. I'd love to shut down the computer for a good month and laze around on the beach and journal and get inspired again.

Trouble is, my work is on the computer and people count on me. My goal is to finish client work the first half of the month so I can create space for other things. I'm a slow and steady worker and I like to space things out, but something has to change. I need my creative mojo back!

In the meantime, here's an infographic I found on staying creative. I'm especially down for number 4, 17, and 28. How about you?

As an English major, the one question I got asked the most throughout my college career was, "Do you want to be a teacher?"

"No, I want to be a writer."

Wasn't that why I studied literature and grammar and collected my favorite poets like baseball cards and wrote essays every waking hour of my life?

In a way, I guess all writers are teachers, but I didn't want to be the kind that stood behind a podium at the front of a classroom.

Yes, I wanted to write for a living, and I do...now. But it didn't come quickly and some parts of my writing life still don't come quickly. Like writing a novel, for instance.

When the good folks at The Ladders asked me to share my advice with aspiring writers, I could only think of this...

enjoy the journey

Indeed, there is a lot more writing advice I could give...

do it because you love it
not for money
or fame
or love
but because it is all you know
and want to know

But if there's one thing I'm learning about the writing life and want to share, it's that we must enjoy the journey.

You might get fired from your first big writing job (I was 17 and working at the local newspaper); you might have to search for day jobs that have nothing to do with writing (various office jobs for years); you might not ever see a way to make money from your writing. 

Enjoy it anyway.

It's all part of the path as long as you keep writing. Through the day jobs and the disappointments and the setbacks, keep writing. 

There's no time limit on this writing life and you must not rush it. You don't have to publish a book by age 30. You don't have to work for a big magazine. You must only write and practice and read and write some more.

Dive deep into the writing process. Savor the actual journey. Because yes, seeing your name on a book jacket or within the pages of a magazine is phenomenal, but the learning, the deep soul stuff, the joy is in the journey. It's walking the winding path with your pen and notebook and exploring this wide world.

So that is my best piece of advice for inspiring writers, young and old. 

Be here now with your words. Let them guide you. 

Enjoy.

P.S. Want some other writing/career tips? Check out: 
So You Want to Quit Your Day Job: 4 Pieces of Advice
12 Writing Prompts to Find Your Story
5 "Productive" Excuses Keeping You From Writing