Having a GYST day (Getting Your Sh*t together)

After the manic week that was: 20,000 words – aka one quarter of a novel, I had to make a few changes. I was knackered – not physically, but mentally. And because I went straight back to work on the Monday, there was no time to surf the sofa and draw breath.

Added to this fact, work was also full-on. There is no-one to cover me when I’m off, so all that happens when I return from a week of annual leave, is that I have a week of work to catch up on. I was exhausted.

I usually set aside Saturday and Sundays for writing but I knew for a fact I couldn’t go straight into writing on Saturday. My mind was still reeling from the previous two hectic weeks.

That’s when I decided a GYST day was in order. That’s short for GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER.

It’s a day when you tidy up all the loose ends that are leftover. All the small jobs that you have neglected for weeks because you’ve been so busy. All the little tasks that jump into your head and nag at you to do and you’ve had to keep putting them off. 

I’m talking about things like:

- Order some groceries in

- Take a stock of your money situation

- Hoover

- Chuck out those clothes to the charity shop

- Order a new set of headphones to replace the dodgy ones

- Get on top of the laundry

All boring jobs but jobs which, when completed, will clear your head.

How on earth can you sit down to write when your mind is swirling with all the odd-jobs that need done? How can you concentrate on the characters and listen to what they’re up to when your head is full and chaotic?

So, Saturday was allocated as a GYST day. This meant I didn’t have the GUILTS about not sitting down to write. But I did use the day productively.

When I had the place cleaned, food ordered in, things prepared for the week ahead, I was able to soak in the tub and then relax in a nice clean home.

It meant that today, when I sat down to look at my writing, my head felt calm and free from any distractions. I was able to spend some time on plotting, looking back at the 20,000 words I’d just written and projecting ahead as to where I can go from here.

In her book “The Artists Way ~ a course in discovering and recovering your creative self” Julia Cameron refers to this GYST idea as an unblocking tool (although she does not use the exact acronym – but the idea behind it is the same). 

She gives the following unblocking tasks to do: 

- Clearing: Throw out or give away 5 ratty pieces of clothing

- Any new changes in your home environment? Make some.

- Mend any mending.

- Repot any pinched and languishing plants.

- Create one wonderful smell in your house – with soup, incense, candles, whatever.

I like to think that the GYST day reminds me of the phrase ~ “Out with the old and in with the new”.

ie. Once you have a good clear-out day (GYST day), you are ready to listen for new ideas coming in to your writing and onto the page.