How long has it been since your last adventure? I’m not talking about reading a book or using your imagination today. I mean the lapse of time since you last slipped on the shoes you don’t usually wear, walked to a place you don’t usually go, and tried something you’ve never tried before.

Writers are stereotyped for a reason. We can get really stuck in our heads. I don’t think we avoid adventures on purpose – I think sometimes we forget we’re not having them because we imagine a new escapade every day.

Experts say reading and writing each day will improve your skills, and it’s true. But if you’re reading, writing, and looking at your work with disgust every day, then doing the work isn’t your problem.

The problem could be you need to live a little bit.

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.  – Henry David Thoreau

This is one of Thoreau’s most famous quotes. The beautiful thing is he wasn’t just making up pretty words: he lived it. He went into the woods and deliberately lived. Your adventure doesn’t have to be as intense as Henry’s, but be deliberate.

Awhile ago, I had some free time that I could have spent writing, but I went downtown Grand Rapids instead. I put away my old sneakers for fancier shoes (that gave me blisters to remember them by) and strolled along the sunny streets. The city was full of history, busyness, mystery, and untold stories. I may or may not have forgotten where I parked at one point.

From the monument celebrating Rosa Parks to the curious Bull’s Head overhang, Grand Rapids was a beautiful place to deliberately live for an afternoon. When you step outside today, take in the air, the rain, and the mayhem. Let yourself be inspired.

Until next time,

Invent your story