I’ve been writing almost every day for the last 9 months, including a stretch of 105 days when I wrote every day. It’s been great fun and I have enjoyed it immensely. I never thought I would enjoy writing as much as I do.

Initially, I decided to take a couple of days away from writing, as I often do. It’s nice to have a break. But after two days of hanging out with family and friends, I decided I needed to do more of that. The two days stretched into a week.

It’s also summer, which is a slow time in the media industry. There are fewer readers around, so it’s a good time to take some time off.

When I had a 9–5 job, I always took weeks off throughout the year. I also went back to work refreshed. So, why shouldn’t I build weeks off into my writing career?

The reason I’ve never considered it is because I only write for an hour or so a day, so I already have plenty of free time. Sometimes I may write an article that only takes 20 minutes. Other times I may write for 2–3 hours. It’s pretty easy for me to work at any time of day, so I have never found it to be a problem.

But now that I’ve had a week off I have seen the benefits first-hand. I have never felt that writing causes me any stress, but having a week off has still made for more relaxing days.

I often suggest that writers should write on most days, and I still think it’s important for new writers. It was writing every day that helped me develop my writing habit and build traction. I would guess that it would be the same for most new writers, but you’ll need to decide for yourself.

From now on, I plan to take a week off writing at least four times a year, maybe more often.

I’ll probably time these to coincide with holiday seasons, but not always. I’ll just have to see how it goes. I don’t like planning my days and weeks in too much detail.

If you’ve never taken a week off from writing, maybe you’d like to give it a go. If it helps make you feel as refreshed as I do, it will be well worth it.

If you already schedule weeks off for yourself, let me know in the comments how it makes you feel. Are you more relaxed or do you miss writing?