Have you ever been away from the desk for a few days, taking a trip? You come back to face the blank screen—It can be immobilizing trying to pick where you left off. Where to begin? There’s so much catching up with all the ways we connect these days.

There are three things I do to get back into the groove of work after taking some time off.

I was away for the weekend to attend my daughter’s baby shower. It was heaven to see her glowing as she unwrapped the gifts, fun to assemble the crib and help set up the baby’s room, and we laughed a lot discussing potential baby names.

Anticipating my grandchild, visiting my family, and the joy of it all makes it even harder to come back to earth (and work).

When I used to work at a ‘regular job’ my first task was always to check for important emails. Since I’ve been writing and working for myself, I’ve changed things around a little.

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Now, I check the social media sites to make sure I haven’t left some person waiting for a response. It’s important to maintain a current dialogue on social media, it keeps your exposure as open as possible. All authors ‘need to be seen’ and if you have fans or supportive author friends and groups, you should keep the dialogue updated. Yes, we could stay current by checking social media on our phones while away, but do you really want to be that person? You know, the one with their nose in their phone instead of interacting with real people and doing things? I rest my case.

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Second is the email.

Browse through and delete the junk,
then read the relevant emails.
Check the calendar.

Making a habit of using the calendar options helps you to remember important things and stay organized, like promos, advertising dates, promises made to help others . . . Use the organizational tools you have to keep things running smoothly. It makes getting back to work after a few days off much easier.

Get in the habit of scheduling the things you need to remember, not only appointments but special webinars, or things you want to get done, like social media posts, guest blogs, blog hops, etc. Anything can get a reminder alert.

Then it’s back to writing, the most important task of any day!

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To get back into my story, (you know, the mood, the groove, or the muse)

I begin by reading a couple of chapters back from where I left off—look it over, make a few adjustments, then before you know it, you’re right back into the mindset of the story.

Never be afraid to go back and review your work. If you do this as a habit you will never face writer’s block. You may approach the work with a new insight after some subconscious creativity has been at play, and you will always be able to continue.