Recently, I learned a trick for falling asleep when conditions are not ideal for rest. (I promise this has relevancy for writing, stick with me.)
Starting with closed eyes, relax the eyes. Feel them deepening into your sockets. Then let go of any tension in your face.
Move on to another part of the body. (I like to start with the feet.) Focus on the muscle group, release it.
I never make it past the feet; by then I’m asleep. If I’m not asleep, I’ve allowed my mind to wander onto something else.
Why this works for me: I stop thinking about trying to sleep, and focus my attention on a single thing.
Focusing on the smallest thing you can accomplish: this is my magic trick to making progress or getting unstuck.
In this month’s Glimmer Train bulletin, fiction writer Jane Delury says that when she’s overwhelmed with her novel draft, she goes to her bookshelf, opens a book she loves, and finds a sentence she’s underlined. She writes:
It’s easy to forget about sentences. They don’t call out for our attention like plot or character. They rarely get chapters in how-to books about fiction. But without them, there’s no plot or character, no story at all. … So for now, instead of going back to fix a scene or make a stretch of dialogue more interesting, I suggest that you set yourself the goal of writing a perfect sentence.
Read Delury’s essay Go Small to Go Big.
Also in this month’s Glimmer Train bulletin:
- The Literary Masquerade: Writing Stories Disguised As Other Forms of Writing by Matthew Vollmer
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
Years ago, one of my doctors taught me similar ways to relax. I start with my feet and work my way up, Deep breath in and out and focus on the particular part of the body, feet, ankles, knees, hips, etc. and on up. This method helps my body to calm and prepare for sleep. 🙂 This can help when I am stuck with my writing, too.
“Better Golf through Self-Hypnosis” — your relaxation method was the basis of just such a book when I was a teenager… way back… and I;ve used the technique to fall asleep throughout my life. But never mind that, I love to focus down on the single sentence… when I’ve given myself permission to spend that kind of time on a piece. It doesn’t work if we’re in a rush. NO RUSH!
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