Taking Big Vacations
One of the biggest perks about being a magazine writer is that you get to make your own schedule. If you want to work Fridays through Wednesdays with Thursdays off, so be it. If you suddenly change your mind and want to take Tuesdays off, you can.
For some reason, many writers fail to translate this freedom into the ability to schedule a vacation into their calendar literally whenever the desire occurs. Yes, vacations cost money and time away from work, but they're an important part of your mental health — and of keeping you productive over the long run. You should be able to find at least two weeks each year to enjoy them, no matter how much work you are getting from various magazine editors.
Americans tend to take a tiny amount of vacation time compared with workers in other industrialized nations. The average two weeks off in the United States is a far cry from the typical twenty-five days of annual vacation that Japanese workers receive and the average forty-two days of annual vacation time that Italian workers enjoy.
Even if you can't take the vacation of your dreams, then you can at least take a “vacation” from your everyday routine, which is likely a major cause of your loneliness and boredom. The following tips for getting back on track may keep you away for a short time from the magazines and editors you know best, but they may just be the change of pace required to get your writing mojo back.
