This is a lovely read. I love the way nature speaks to her. I’ve heard about writing in segments. I’ve yet to try the 25 minute Pomodoro technique but I’m curious. Tom Hanks used this method to write his first book.
Glad you enjoyed it, CK! You made my day already by introducing me to something new. I had to look up the Pomodoro technique—so I've learned something already and the sun is barely up! :-) I think my body would really love it if I tried working in only half-hour segments. A very wise counselor-friend advised me not too long ago to get up and dance for 5 minutes after every half hour of work. Do I follow the advice? Not really, because when it comes to creative work I don't enjoy following a clock. I'd rather work as long as the attention is there and then take a break. It turns out that I need to eat rather often (4x/day), so the breaks come pretty often anyway. But my body does get tired of the chair, and my arms tired of the keyboard. So I may yet be persuaded to try it. If anyone else uses the Pomodoro technique, I'd love to hear about it!
I loosely used that technique while working on my novel and found it really helpful. I was coming back to writing after a long stretch of debilitating brain fog and cognitive issues (long Covid), and breaking things up this way allowed me to rest my brain and eyes, check in with my body, and refuel. I found that I could write for longer, put more and better words on the page, and end up less exhausted - sort of like using the run-walk method rather than just straight up running. I wasn’t a total stickler about it. Sometimes I worked through the timer if I was really in flow, and just thought of it as permission to stop as soon as I felt ready.
Sounds like you were really listening, Lisa. It sounds like you're feeling better now, thank goodness. I like that idea of using a timer as permission.
My work style is similar to yours. I too need to eat every few hours. My Apple Watch also reminds me to stand. Love the idea of dancing after a writing binge!
Sometimes I think I don't get much done in a day besides eating! Sounds like you're already listening closely to what the body needs. It's the first step to listening to all of nature, I find, because our own body is just the piece of nature we're most intimate with.
It also helped when I was feeling blocked because I knew I never had to sit there banging my head against the keys for more than 25 minutes at a stretch.
Banging is so frustrating, isn't it? I try to use that feeling as a sign to get up and stretch—or do anything else, really. But there are times when I want the next step in the writing so badly that I will sit there anyway. I don't recommend it! :-D
Thank you for sharing your story about the tree coming to visit you, it's very powerful. I recently wrote about some clear signs I received from birds while on a walk. I have found many signs and guideposts from the bird world, although I would not call myself a bird person.
Priscilla and Amanda, I appreciate this great interview, it's fascinating to get a peek into the inner workings of another contemplative human!
Thanks for your good words, Donna! It looks to me like every being and part of nature has things to share, things to say. We can listen in many ways—by nurturing their lives and stopping the things that deplete life in general (like fossil fuels!); by listening quietly from the heart; by shaping our lives and societies into the patterns and limits of this dear and beautiful Earth. Paying attention to signs and guideposts is a richly satisfying way to listen, in my experience. It helps us feel our connection, our belonging, to the wider world of life.
Thank you Priscilla and Amanda, I enjoyed reading about your Cave of the Heart very much. I am applying a light touch to drafting my book project, and it is surprising me how much I can get done by writing just a little (nearly) every day. With chronic illness there are no absolutes except ‘some days you will run out of energy’. Like you, evenings are no longer a thing for me.
Hi, Michelle, I'm glad you're finding a rhythm that works for you! Half a lifetime ago (literally, in my early thirties) I had chronic fatigue syndrome (now called ME) for several years. It taught me to pay attention, strict attention, to that moment when the energy runs low. I find as I get older that the energy waxes and wanes in a parallel way—not exactly the same, but familiar enough to recognize. It's a fine art, isn't it—enjoying the energy when it's there, using it as much as possible, then being willing to shift the gears down and relax. Brava to you for finding a light touch!
Yes, ME/CFS is my main diagnosis, along with chronic migraine. I’ve done and will continue to explore ways to manage my energy to live a quality life without so many energy ‘boom & bust’ cycles. I’m glad you recovered from ME - do you feel you got back to old normal or adjusted to new normal? Or something else…
Yes, I did get back to normal. After about four years I was living a usual tempo again, very active, no more naps. And I needed exercise again, not getting sick from it anymore. So I bought a mountain bike! And enjoyed it on the trails, along with hiking, for 25 years. But one thing changed—my voice was a little weaker, like the fine muscles didn't quite work the same way. So I didn't pursue music again. Except in writing. ;-) Wishing you all the best with writing and with life! Happy to talk CFS/ME some more if you wish—or anyone else too! Feel free to email me.
As a fellow autistic nature-loving writer, I was gripped by this interview. I was relieved to read Priscilla write about a way of writing that isn't 'chain yourself to the desk for hours/days' because my energy levels rarely allow for that. I do short bursts, when inspired, and sometimes come back to things weeks, months or even years later and suddenly they want to be finished.
Nice to meet you, Morgan! I think of that "do it when inspired" tempo as more like how the animals live. They turn on bursts of energy for hunting (if they're predators) then eat and rest and enjoy themselves. And they're always ready to change direction, to turn on a dime. I think of a bear sitting up to sniff the air, ready to move in whatever direction smells good at the moment! I too pay a lot of attention to what "wants" to be done and when it's ready. There's a dialogue happening that way—listening to larger rhythms. I'd even go so far as to say that wanting my energy to be steady all the time is just an industrial way of treating myself—wanting to operate like a machine instead of the animal I really am. How wonderful that you pay attention in these ways!
Yes! Getting out of the 'machinery' way of thinking we've been indoctrinated into. I love the idea of being more in tune with nature this way. Great to meet you too Priscilla - I'm listening to your podcast now :)
What a fascinating snapshot of a writer’s life! Thanks for this lovely interview. I’m still figuring out what my best writing practice is; haven’t found a rhythm that works with my body yet. There are times when I can hyper focus for long periods, and there are other times when I really can’t do more than 15 or 20 minutes at once.
This is a lovely read. I love the way nature speaks to her. I’ve heard about writing in segments. I’ve yet to try the 25 minute Pomodoro technique but I’m curious. Tom Hanks used this method to write his first book.
Glad you enjoyed it, CK! You made my day already by introducing me to something new. I had to look up the Pomodoro technique—so I've learned something already and the sun is barely up! :-) I think my body would really love it if I tried working in only half-hour segments. A very wise counselor-friend advised me not too long ago to get up and dance for 5 minutes after every half hour of work. Do I follow the advice? Not really, because when it comes to creative work I don't enjoy following a clock. I'd rather work as long as the attention is there and then take a break. It turns out that I need to eat rather often (4x/day), so the breaks come pretty often anyway. But my body does get tired of the chair, and my arms tired of the keyboard. So I may yet be persuaded to try it. If anyone else uses the Pomodoro technique, I'd love to hear about it!
I loosely used that technique while working on my novel and found it really helpful. I was coming back to writing after a long stretch of debilitating brain fog and cognitive issues (long Covid), and breaking things up this way allowed me to rest my brain and eyes, check in with my body, and refuel. I found that I could write for longer, put more and better words on the page, and end up less exhausted - sort of like using the run-walk method rather than just straight up running. I wasn’t a total stickler about it. Sometimes I worked through the timer if I was really in flow, and just thought of it as permission to stop as soon as I felt ready.
Sounds like you were really listening, Lisa. It sounds like you're feeling better now, thank goodness. I like that idea of using a timer as permission.
My work style is similar to yours. I too need to eat every few hours. My Apple Watch also reminds me to stand. Love the idea of dancing after a writing binge!
Sometimes I think I don't get much done in a day besides eating! Sounds like you're already listening closely to what the body needs. It's the first step to listening to all of nature, I find, because our own body is just the piece of nature we're most intimate with.
It also helped when I was feeling blocked because I knew I never had to sit there banging my head against the keys for more than 25 minutes at a stretch.
Banging is so frustrating, isn't it? I try to use that feeling as a sign to get up and stretch—or do anything else, really. But there are times when I want the next step in the writing so badly that I will sit there anyway. I don't recommend it! :-D
What a fun conversation about writing process! If anyone would like tips on listening to nature, I'm happy to go there too.
Always open to learning more about this!
So great to see you here, Priscilla! Thank you for sharing this with us.
Thanks for stopping by, John! I'm following your good work with water.
Thank you Priscilla.
Thank you for sharing your story about the tree coming to visit you, it's very powerful. I recently wrote about some clear signs I received from birds while on a walk. I have found many signs and guideposts from the bird world, although I would not call myself a bird person.
Priscilla and Amanda, I appreciate this great interview, it's fascinating to get a peek into the inner workings of another contemplative human!
Thanks for your good words, Donna! It looks to me like every being and part of nature has things to share, things to say. We can listen in many ways—by nurturing their lives and stopping the things that deplete life in general (like fossil fuels!); by listening quietly from the heart; by shaping our lives and societies into the patterns and limits of this dear and beautiful Earth. Paying attention to signs and guideposts is a richly satisfying way to listen, in my experience. It helps us feel our connection, our belonging, to the wider world of life.
Thank you Priscilla and Amanda, I enjoyed reading about your Cave of the Heart very much. I am applying a light touch to drafting my book project, and it is surprising me how much I can get done by writing just a little (nearly) every day. With chronic illness there are no absolutes except ‘some days you will run out of energy’. Like you, evenings are no longer a thing for me.
Hi, Michelle, I'm glad you're finding a rhythm that works for you! Half a lifetime ago (literally, in my early thirties) I had chronic fatigue syndrome (now called ME) for several years. It taught me to pay attention, strict attention, to that moment when the energy runs low. I find as I get older that the energy waxes and wanes in a parallel way—not exactly the same, but familiar enough to recognize. It's a fine art, isn't it—enjoying the energy when it's there, using it as much as possible, then being willing to shift the gears down and relax. Brava to you for finding a light touch!
Yes, ME/CFS is my main diagnosis, along with chronic migraine. I’ve done and will continue to explore ways to manage my energy to live a quality life without so many energy ‘boom & bust’ cycles. I’m glad you recovered from ME - do you feel you got back to old normal or adjusted to new normal? Or something else…
Yes, I did get back to normal. After about four years I was living a usual tempo again, very active, no more naps. And I needed exercise again, not getting sick from it anymore. So I bought a mountain bike! And enjoyed it on the trails, along with hiking, for 25 years. But one thing changed—my voice was a little weaker, like the fine muscles didn't quite work the same way. So I didn't pursue music again. Except in writing. ;-) Wishing you all the best with writing and with life! Happy to talk CFS/ME some more if you wish—or anyone else too! Feel free to email me.
As a fellow autistic nature-loving writer, I was gripped by this interview. I was relieved to read Priscilla write about a way of writing that isn't 'chain yourself to the desk for hours/days' because my energy levels rarely allow for that. I do short bursts, when inspired, and sometimes come back to things weeks, months or even years later and suddenly they want to be finished.
Nice to meet you, Morgan! I think of that "do it when inspired" tempo as more like how the animals live. They turn on bursts of energy for hunting (if they're predators) then eat and rest and enjoy themselves. And they're always ready to change direction, to turn on a dime. I think of a bear sitting up to sniff the air, ready to move in whatever direction smells good at the moment! I too pay a lot of attention to what "wants" to be done and when it's ready. There's a dialogue happening that way—listening to larger rhythms. I'd even go so far as to say that wanting my energy to be steady all the time is just an industrial way of treating myself—wanting to operate like a machine instead of the animal I really am. How wonderful that you pay attention in these ways!
Yes! Getting out of the 'machinery' way of thinking we've been indoctrinated into. I love the idea of being more in tune with nature this way. Great to meet you too Priscilla - I'm listening to your podcast now :)
Hope you enjoy! And I love your words: "the machinery way of thinking."
What a fascinating snapshot of a writer’s life! Thanks for this lovely interview. I’m still figuring out what my best writing practice is; haven’t found a rhythm that works with my body yet. There are times when I can hyper focus for long periods, and there are other times when I really can’t do more than 15 or 20 minutes at once.