Too...Much...Talking
If you're already a fulltime (or most-of-the-time) freelancer at home, you'll probably identify with this: my tongue is like lead. Seriously. For 6 hours a day I speak to no one, and I exhaust my brain of all words and word combinations. So when I'm confronted with small talk at the post office, picking up the children, or with a neighbor, I'm suddenly not so good at it. I'm sure my children's teachers can attest to this.
Reader comments in the previous blog post about the perils of working at home had many good points about how to make this work better. Veteran writers: what are your suggestions for this particular problem- the lack of social interaction? I know that many writers work in cafes, or schedule lunch dates, but I really find I have to jealously guard my 6 hours of writing, or it unravels between my fingers, and I fall behind.
Writers need social interaction to help gain new ideas, meet new folks, and keep the voice and brain active beyond the writing process. The absolutely best way to accomplish this? Join a Toastmasters International club Toastmasters is a non-profit educational group devoted to helping people improve their communication and leadership skills. Clubs are everywhere in this country and 80 foreign countries. Clubs usually meet once a week for an hour or hour and a half. These meetings are workshops where people learn how to improve their speaking skills, both in prepared and impromptu speaking. Workshops are where you make your mistakes and no one laughs because everyone is in the same boat. You can do as much or as little speaking as you decide. It is an excellent way to keep the brain and voice active, find new and interesting story ideas, and make new friends. Visit ToastmastersInternational.org to find a club near you.
I have been writing full-time from home for only about 3 months now, and this is becoming a real problem for me. I look forward to seeing what other writers suggest. Thanks for putting this out there!
Boy! Can I id with that!
I will sometimes get a phone call in the afternoon, and they can’t believe I have not talked to anyone that day. My voice just does not work!
I have the opposite problem…I have too much conversation and don’t get enough writing done!! From my husband, to my adult daughters….I am terrible at ignoring the phone, etc., and all your talk about silence and no small talk has given me some valuable insight on how ‘real’ writers are supposed to work!! Thanks
Wow! How different from my life! My writing requires me to talk to dozens of people every day. I am constantly interviewing people for my columns and articles. Small talk at parties is easy because I’m genuinely interested in what people have to say. People often ask me about my favorite interviews, which I am more than happy to talk about. (It’s never a bad idea to say something nice about people you have interviewed.)
I’m in the same boat as Valerie. After day upon day of back-to-back interviews it’s nice to have some peace and quiet. But on days when I don’t have lots of interviews, I listen to a talk radio station. The hosts, news, and traffic reporters are like virtual co-workers (ones I can literally tune out when I need to transcribe). Listening to the callers – even calling in now and then – makes you feel as if you’re part of the conversation.