I know that for much of the country, spring and summer have been here for a few weeks. Here in Colorado we’ve been dealing with snow weekend after weekend. Until last weekend when the summer weather finally arrived, and it appears it is sticking around.
During the warmer days, writing habits might change a little bit.
For example, you might find that you have less time to write if children are home from school, or if you’re like me you might have more time to write because you’re waking up earlier due to the bright sunlight pouring through your window at 5:30 in the morning.
To help embrace the long days of summer here’s a fun list of tools to help you write:
#1 Notepad – There’s something wonderfully freeing about being able to write outside. Yet it can be cumbersome and lets face it, a bit risky, to take your laptop outside. A notepad like the Google Nexus, Kindle Fire, or an iPad can help you be productive – you might even find time to write a few pages during a soccer game or pool party. If you don’t like the small keyboard, there are full size Bluetooth keyboards that are still compact enough to fit in your purse.
#2 Umbrella – Sit on your patio and write in the fresh air without worrying about skin cancer, sweat dripping down your back, or having to deal with the intense glare of your monitor’s screen. I snagged an umbrella at Ikea last year and love it!
#3 Note taking device – Chances are the warm weather will have you out and about more often. What do you do when you have a great story idea and you’re far away from your writing desk? If you’re me, you pull out your cell phone and send yourself a quick email.
However, you can embrace a much more sophisticated approach. If you have a smart phone, then consider Onenote, Evernote, or Write2 which is a note taking app designed for writers. It’s an iPhone application and you can learn more about it here https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/write-2-best-note-taking-writing/id426253668?mt=8
The other path you can take is the good old fashioned pencil and paper approach. It has worked for writers for decades and as long as you’re skilled at remembering to take the items with you wherever you go, there’s no reason to go high tech. Personally, I always forget to bring a notebook and pen or my pen runs out of ink so the cell phone approach works better for me.
#4 Blender – Why on earth would a blender be a summer writing tool? Well for drinking those delicious Frozen Coffee drinks that fuel summer writing marathons or for a nice margarita.
#5 Portable/Outdoor Speakers – Finally, because I normally write to music, it helps to have a good pair of portable speakers. That way I can listen to my iPod when I”m outside on the patio writing and enjoying the sunshine.
That’s it. With a can do attitude and a carved out niche of time, you can meet your summertime writing goals. Have fun and don’t forget the sunscreen.
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