Writers tend to be WAY too serious sometimes. And I know with July NaNoWriMo, this sentiment will be no different for a lot of writers. I will TRY not to be that way this time. I find that I get SO uptight that I don’t give myself any breathing room when I get into this writing competition. I just sit and write, day in and day out. I don’t reward myself for good behaviour, for getting my goals accomplish, but I really hack at myself if I don’t get the word count that I SHOULD get done on a particular day. The best way to proceed as a writer is to be kind to yourself. You should be your own best friend and you should make sure that you don’t undermine yourself as a writer just because something goes wrong during one day or one week of writing. I have gotten to know a good number of writers over the past few years and I have seen first hand that they are usually very hard on themselves. They don’t give themselves a break nor do they think that they deserve a break. Writing is one of the most difficult things that we could do. Writers are usually the most angst stricken people that you will come across. This is probably due to the nature of the profession. They feel just uninclined to be nice to themselves and they LOVE to push themselves to the point that they feel trapped in their own heads, so to speak. I write about this today because I am very hard on myself as well as a writer. I think it is very important for all of us to lighten up and have fun and be kind to ourselves. If we aren’t kind to ourselves, who will be? Now that’s a REAL question to ponder, right? ~ Be Kind, Write, and have fun! ~ Irene