Pages
- 50 Tension Techniques
- About Kristi Holl
- De-Stressing the Writing Life
- More Writer’s First Aid
- Time Management for Writers book list
- Writing Mysteries for Young People
- Quantity vs. Quality: Big Issue for Today’s Writer
- It’s My Company Policy
- Motivation: the Icing on the Cake
- Help is Just a Click Away
- Commitment Without Compromise
- Motivation or Committment? [Part Two]
- It’s No Mystery!
- Motivation or Commitment? Only ONE is Necessary
Blogroll
- Advanced Fiction Writing Blog
- Books and Writing
- Chip MacGregor.com
- Christian Writer’s Den
- CRITIQUES by Kristi
- cynsations
- Editorial Anonymous
- Institute of Children’s Literature
- Kristi’s Website
- Rachelle Gardner, Literary Agent
- SCBWI
- Sharing with Writers and Readers
- So You Want to Be Published
- The Working Writer’s Coach
- The Writing Life
- Writing Fiction Right
Archives
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
Categories
- 50 Tension Techniques
- agent
- Artist's Way
- attitudes
- authenticity
- award
- balance
- beliefs
- blogging
- blogging software
- book marketing
- book releases
- books
- books on tape
- bookstores
- boundaries
- budget
- buying
- career planning
- character development
- checklist
- children
- Children's Book Insider
- children's writing
- Christian writing
- close reading
- commitment
- conferences
- consistency
- contests
- courage
- creativity
- critique groups
- critiques
- deadlines
- depression
- disappointments
- discipline
- distractions
- dreams
- ebooks
- editing
- editors
- Editors and Predators
- electronic media
- emotional balance
- encouragement
- energy
- estimated tax
- excellence
- expectations
- families
- fears
- fiction
- figures of speech
- finding time
- finish line
- fitness
- flexibility
- focus
- focusing
- friends
- FrontPage
- genres
- getting started
- goals
- habits
- healing
- health
- holidays
- honor
- humor
- ideas
- income tax
- inspiration
- Internet
- interruptions
- interview
- Jane Austen
- Jane Yolen
- Jerry Jenkins
- Joshua Bell
- Jott
- journaling
- Julia Cameron
- language
- learning disability
- lexophile
- LifeJournal software
- lifestyle
- Madeleine L'Engle
- making money
- marketing
- meditations
- Memorial Day
- mentors
- More Writer's First Aid
- motivation
- mysteries
- NaNoEdMo
- NaNoWriMo
- networking
- New Year's resolutions
- nonfiction
- novel writing
- organization
- pace
- pain
- passion
- perfectionism
- perseverance
- persistence
- picture books
- platform
- preparation
- priorities
- procrastination
- productivity
- promotion
- proposal
- psychology of writing
- publicity
- publishing
- query
- readers
- reading
- recovery
- rejections
- renewal
- research
- retreat
- revision
- rough draft
- sabotage
- sales
- scam
- scams
- SCBWI
- scenes
- schedules
- search engines
- self-care
- self-discipline
- self-promotion
- self-publishing
- SEO
- shaping
- Sherryl Clark
- simplify
- sleep deprivation
- social needs
- social networking
- soldiers
- solitude
- strategy
- studying
- success
- support
- talent
- taxes
- Terry Whalin
- thinking
- time management
- tips
- toxic behavior
- traffic
- Uncategorized
- used books
- vanity publishing
- voice
- waiting
- Walking on Alligators
- websites
- Weebly
- wisdom
- word count
- words
- work in progress
- Write4Kids
- Writer Beware
- writer homes
- Writer Magazine
- Writer's Digest
- Writer's First Aid
- writers
- writers block
- writers magazines
- writing
- writing advice
- writing anxiety
- writing books
- writing challenges
- writing classes
- writing coach
- writing conferences
- writing contests
- writing course
- Writing for the Soul
- writing habits
- writing honest
- writing information
- writing inspiration
- writing journal
- writing life
- writing more
- writing mysteries
- Writing Mysteries for Young People
- writing output
- writing phases
- writing process
- writing schedule
- writing space
December 4, 2009
As I mentioned in an earlier post, one of the drawbacks of NaNo this year was gaining six pounds. It really needs to go, but I hate counting calories, grams of anything, and points. Then last night when cleaning my office, I found a book I’d bought last year (post holidays) but never read called The Writing Diet: Write Yourself Right-Size by Julia Cameron.
I’ve been a fan of Julia Cameron’s writing since The Artist’s Way saved my sanity and career many years ago. I’m intrigued by her premise in the prologue of the writing-diet book (which is as far as I’ve progressed so far.)
Writing for Insight
Julia teaches creativity recovery classes, and she had noticed that her students were also losing weight by the end of her course. “Weight loss is a frequent by-product of creative recovery,” she says. “Overeating blocks our creativity. The flip side is also true: we can use creativity to block our overeating.” Wouldn’t that be wonderful if it were true?
She asks some questions that are “food for thought”: What if words can be consumed instead of calories? What if, struck by a Snack Attack, I said to myself, “What’s eating me?” What if I took a moment and jotted down my feelings? What if I gave myself food for thought instead of food itself?
She suggests that when a food craving hits you that you take yourself to the
page to write instead of going to the refrigerator. Your magic wand is your pen.
Julia’s Promise
Her promise if you undertake her Writing Diet? “What I can promise you,” Julia says, “is increased clarity, increased energy, increased productivity. As you write, you will lose weight and gain creativity. As you unblock your feelings, you will gain access to the energy that they hold.”
Anyone out there who has this book want to try this with me? I think it would be fun to compare notes. I plan to use one of mymultiple journals and dive into the rest of the book this weekend–AFTER attending a first-of-the-season Christmas party tonight!
8 Comments »
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL
Wow! This is a fantastic idea! Thanks for sharing.
Comment by Jane Healy — December 4, 2009 @ 1:18 pm
I have this book languishing on my shelf, too – thanks for the reminder. I’m going to dig it out and give it a try – especially since I have some Nano weight gain myself.
Comment by Easter — December 4, 2009 @ 1:27 pm
Ooh, thanks for the book info! I’m gonna put this one on my Christmas list and hopefully it’ll help me take off those holiday pounds!
I loved Cameron’s The Artist’s Way as well!
Comment by Emily — December 4, 2009 @ 3:35 pm
Oh, I haven’t seen this book. I’ll have to check it out. I tell you though, writing about food makes me HUNGRY. My sister and I were keeping a food diary together in the earlier part of the year. She lost weight and I stayed the same. Over summer, I stopped keeping track. The only time I’ve ever lost weight was during Lent and it was because I fasted every Friday.
Comment by Vijaya — December 4, 2009 @ 5:11 pm
Thanks for all the comments, everyone! I do think I’m going to give this a try. Writing seems to cure about everything else for me–why not the extra pounds? If nothing else, my hands will be too busy to feed my face. (In theory anyway…)
Comment by Kristi Holl — December 5, 2009 @ 8:19 pm
What an interesting idea! I’ll get it out of the library tomorrow. Never thought about that…
Comment by Amy Simon — December 6, 2009 @ 8:40 pm
What a great idea. That seems to be a theme with dieting – find something, anything, else to do with your hands till the craving passes.
For me if the craving persits I try a glass of Milk – so far that seems to help get past the craving – I know it’s giving in a bit but it’s a healthier choice to chips & pop.
Comment by Ally M — December 7, 2009 @ 10:37 am
Medications Test Positive Opiates http://www.barharborhostel.com/ – ambien online No prescription! Fast delivery! http://www.barharborhostel.com/ – zolpidem no prescription
Comment by Tremunref — September 1, 2011 @ 10:31 am