Top 10 Things for Writers to Do During the Strike

Creative ideas abound when a writer cannot work for pay. As thoughts flow endlessly and dust collects on old manuscripts, some possible ways to use the down time efficiently might be scrawled on a "TO-DO" list:

1. Revise something you forgot was still in the recycle bin.

2. Begin a new cover letter for the manuscript that was rejected for the 50th time by a large publisher.

3. Circle the waste bin and piece together the contents of typewritten dribble that is still lurking in and around the thing. Do not contemplate donning rubber gloves and pasting these scraps of paper together to form a threatening ransom note or anything. If you do create a note in anger-do not mail it.

4. Write some Christmas updates on yourself and your family to insert into some cheap Christmas cards while listening to Bing Crosby's White Christmas CD for the 100th time.

5. Read and revise those attempts on poetry and prose you wrote as a teenager, when you thought a career in writing would catapult you to Hemingway status.

6. Sort through the stacks of rejection form letters circa 1990. This will help make you feel so much better.

7. Browse on line for Christmas gifts that are not too pricey, but will look impressive when your producer, editor, or agent opens them. This should cover several hours of several days.

8. Write a haiku about the strike and all the reasons you agree or disagree with the players involved. Get creative and do research on traditional haiku format. A haiku will definitely test your sense of creative ability and whittle away a few hours of the night.

9. Listen to Alvin and the Chipmunks Christmas CD and try to sing the way they do. Pour yourself a nice, crystal glass of your favorite spirits and write about the experience as you continue to perfect your vocal skills and octave range. Think about a recording career, but don't make any demos yet.

10. Begin your masterpiece-The Next Great American Novel-again. This will separate the true warrior writers from the content lackeys. It will also enable you to fantasize about the lifestyle you would like to become accustomed to, which always motivates you to write more.

It is possible to pencil out an assortment of these lists of things to do to occupy your time. They are also really great when entered into the computer and modified using really big, pretty fonts like Tahoma or Courier. You can get some gorgeous frames for them at places like Bed, Bath and Beyond or Pier 1 Imports, and if you print them out on some colored paper, you can redecorate your writing space with them. My writing room looks great since I redecorated the walls and I have had people comment on the use of lighting in the room, too. I spaced candles throughout and the aromatherapy is inspiring me to write some unusual things of late. I highly recommend moderation in the playing of Christmas CDs, however. Bing and Alvin are beginning to melt together in my head and the sound is becoming rather annoying. I hope the strike ends soon. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good fight. I mean night. I should have listened to all those people who told me to teach writing for a living. But-my masterpiece would never get done...Oh yeah, I forgot, it's not done anyway....