I had the pleasure of visiting California recently to attend a conference. The concept was that, while I attended the conference during the day, I would continue my writing during the night (and early mornings) just like what I normally do at home in sweet Trinidad and Tobago.
It would be like I never left. Easy enough, right?
Except, I was not at home. I did leave.
I was in an entirely different country. And because of that, I did absolutely no writing at all.
Have you ever experienced this? Is travelling and writing (or any other hobby, exercise maybe) a problem?
It is for me. I know because this isn’t the first time I’ve tried.
Why Can’t I Travel and Write?
For me, the problem happens because there’s too much action going on. The conference had all these after hour social events, and my colleagues always wanted to go somewhere for dinner.
I remember being in Las Vegas a while ago. I got back to my room earlier than usual and thought, maybe I could get some writing done.
So, I pulled out my bad boy of a laptop, whipped it open, placed fingers to keyboard and… nothing.
I couldn’t even type. How could I?
Everyone else was gambling, attending live entertainment, partying.
There was this voice at the back of my head saying, “What are you doing? You’re in Las Vegas. You could write anytime. With all that going on, you’re going to stay indoors and write? I don’t think so.”
You could imagine what happened after that.
So What’s the Fix?
Here’s what I think about writing while you’re travelling: if the main purpose of your trip isn’t writing, then screw it.
Let writing take care of itself. You’ll continue when you get back (or waiting in the air port, which is when I started writing this article). I’m sure your readers will understand.
And here’s an added benefit: you’ll come back with loads of new ideas.
The brain is funny that way in that you figure things out while you’re not thinking about it.
Just don’t take too long to get back in the grove. Remember, you don’t want to lose your inertia.
One week is fine. Two weeks is redlining it. Three weeks and you’re risking brain cells.
So what do you think about travelling and writing? Let me know in the comments.
While I think it’s possible to travel and write (it takes setting aside time to do so), I agree with you that it’s important not to stress about it, especially if the focus of the trip isn’t writing. Absorbing life is just as important as writing it all down.
You got it.
Jevon, firstly if you going to be visiting Vegas I think writing should be the last thing on your mind. Same probably for LA. That being said however, traveling abroad should serve as a means of inspiration for your stories whether it is fictional or non-fictional. I personally find it easy to concentrate during my flights to and from various destinations so maybe you can give that a try next time you fly. Note though, don’t think about doing this in economy 🙂
Cheers.
You’re right, Daren. Traveling is a great means of inspiration. And I definitely got some new ideas from the trip.
Unfortunately for me, I can’t write on an airplane because it makes me feel sick (bummer). But I can write in the airport.
Another great article. I will apply it on my next trip to Tobago.
Thanks Aisha. Tobago is a great place to just relax.