Every writer needs rest. And sometimes, especially if your life is
particularly harried, you simply need to stop and "be" for a while.
Great writing doesn't flow from an exhausted, frustrated heart.

Source: Beth Erickson, filbertpublishing.com

Mid-July Bulletin:  Summer is passing you by!

We’re one month into the season and too many of us are tethered to a wi-fi signal instead of a beach ball.

Need some inspiration to help you make a few changes before we run out of summer?

• Take a Friday off…  Get any deadlines finished early, and go outside Friday morning for some fun.

• Swim… Get to the water, either a nearby pool, a lake, or a good walk along a calm river. Let your mind float.

• Eat out… Work-at-home freelancers eat from hand to mouth – usually a sandwich or handful of snacks from the kitchen. Enjoy summer by eating at an outdoor cafe. Nothing formal, just a flatbread and a glass of wine, a good burger, or a great ice cream sundae. You deserve it.

Freelancers aren’t alone in our relentless workload. Corporate employees also fail to take enough time off.  A Harris Interactive study states nearly 57 percent of working Americans had unused vacation time at the end of 2011.

So shake off your Monday routine. Tonight, go out and watch the stars, and enjoy the richness of quiet relaxation.

Helen Gallagher it the author of Release Your Writing: Book Publishing Your Way. She shares her advice and ideas on small business and technology here at Freelance-Zone.com and through her books and blogs, accessible through www.releaseyourwriting.com. She is a member of ASJA, National Book Critics Circle, Small Publishers Artists & Writers Network, and several great Chicago-area writing groups.