June Writing Retreat is coming up! (Post)
How do you plan to prepare?
How I prepare: (I didn't mean for this to be a whole article)
When I am trying to spend awhile writing, I want to clear all external decisions. I am aware that I do this to an extreme, but I take my writing retreat time seriously. Find what works for you.
All of this is about removing any friction that might exist between me and writing.
My number one is to have a meal plan, so I never have to think about what I am eating. I take it one step further and just pre-make meals. It's probably easier to make a big casserole and eat that for a few days, but I hate leftovers, so I like to prep and freeze individual single-person meals I can pop in the oven from frozen. Ramekins are great for little pot pies, lasagna, taco bowls, curry, and many more. And for lunch, I tend to keep my favorite bagels, a hummus, or a pasta salad. I plan for a day of cooking right before a planned retreat, so I don't have to do any cooking or thinking about food the week of.
After that are chores, I want to have nothing on my mind. The days before (normally when I am finishing cooking), I do all laundry, change sheets, clean counters, clean fridge shelves, even tidy drawers, stock soaps, products, anything, and everything that sits on your mind when you pass it. Walk around your house/room and make a list and chip through it.
Then, because I know myself and how forgetful I can be when I am focused on something, I make daily care checklists (and sometimes phone notification reminders). I normally make a little checklist and print it out with Morning, Lunch, Dinner, and Evening. Things to add to this beyond eating reminders are other responsibilities like watering plants, running the dishwasher at the end of the day, or posting word counts. This list shouldn't be overwhelming. It should only have tasks you need to do, but should be thorough with things you would normally automatically do, like I couldn't be at my desk without my coffee, but 'Make coffee' can be the first little check off. Look at you! You are already done with something, onto the next.
Then the creating itself needs to be prepared for. I like to spend the lead-up week (or a few) to a retreat writing mainly notes, organizing notes, and hiding things I will not be working on away from view. I personally like to have thorough scene notes for this sort of thing, so I can just go chapter to chapter without having to stop and think what I need to do next.
The last removal of friction is the workspace. The workspace should be clear with water, hair ties, and anything else needed with in arms reach, but also a spare notebook. If you have any thoughts that might derail what you are doing, write them down to think of them until your next break or after the retreat. That is physical, but also examine your workflow. For me, I write each chapter into a blank doc, so I will make a bunch of these blanks name correctly ahead of time, so I don't have to stop and lose momentum while working. These docs are linked where I keep my notes, so I don't have to fumble around in docs to find them. My flow is probably different from yours, so think about what gets in your way on your way to write and see if you can make it a smother transition into the work you want to do.
I told you my plans what are yours?
