Over the weekend, we had quite a heatwave. Here in western Pennsylvania, that means humidity on top of the high temperatures, and while many of the communities around my area received afternoon rains to ease that humidity, mine did not. When I woke up this morning, however, it was to the sound of rain and temperatures more than twenty degrees (F) below what we had Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Perfect weather to sit down with a large mug of tea and my laptop for an extensive writing session.

Many people have favorite elements which enhance their creative pursuits that go beyond having free time and inspiration. Rainy days always manage to put me in the mood for creativity. They’re not always conducive to painting, but these rainy days are perfect for writing, photo editing, or dry-medium pursuits. Sometimes, if the rain is slow and scattered, I may even take my camera for a drive, capturing landscapes from my vehicle at some of my favorite natural areas. Sometimes we’ll have lowkey thunderstorms that drowned out the sounds of other distractions. Those are my favorite when I have writing I want to do.

Today was a good day. I made progress on my Camp NaNoWriMo project that I couldn’t focus on during the uncomfortable heat of the previous days. I still have quite a bit of storyline left, probably more than what I anticipated when I set my word count goal, but I have no doubt I’ll finish out the month on top. And I’m ready to continue working on this plot into August even though I hope to return to my primary projects once NaNo is over. The next week’s forecast promises weather that should be conducive to my creative pursuits, and I’m hoping for similar days as we head deeper into the second half of summer.

We can’t control weather or various other environmental factors to set up the perfect conditions for creativity, but when everything does line up to our ideals, it’s a wonderful feeling to be able to create under those conditions. When those conditions do arise for you, I hope you have the opportunity to say no to other priorities and focus solely on your personal goals and projects. And if you don’t know yet what those ideal conditions should be for you, I hope you have the opportunity to explore as many environmental factors as possible until you find your ideal environment.

Hezzie