Earlier this week I read a thoughtful New York Times piece on the “September Scaries,” the seasonal version of the Sunday Scaries. If you’re heading into fall feeling a sense of loss or dread, you may be a fellow sufferer.

Research suggests that the September Scaries can hit hard for a few different reasons:

• Your summer vacation didn’t quite live up to expectations - you’re not feeling as rested and refreshed as you were hoping

• September brings abrupt routine changes - less daylight, school schedules, and looming work deadlines

• The turn to fall can make us feel like time is slipping away and we start to regret our choices

As a former academic, I subscribed to the Platinum Tier of the September Scaries for many years. Like most professors, I saw summer as the time I would be free of teaching and students and finally have time to get ALL the writing done. Of course, I also needed summer to recharge and spend time with the family after a grueling academic year. When mid-August rolled around, I inevitably panicked and immediately wished I had spent my summer differently. I never felt like I got as much writing done or vacationing in as I had planned.

Eventually, however, I discovered that September might be a bit scary, but the fall is the perfect time for a fresh start. It’s a chance to align your writing with your rhythms, to embrace your weekly routine, and to build momentum.

Five ways to turn September Scaries into September Momentum:

1. Get focused. Don’t let the infinite list of possibilities weigh you down. Identify your single most important project. Then create a focused 12 Week Plan around it.

2. Start small. If you’re feeling wobbly or coming out of summer a bit out of sorts, don’t expect yourself to do too much. Make sure your weekly plans are realistic, knock out some quick wins, and build your mojo. Writing is a long-term hustle, not a race.

3. Reset your routine. Fall is a great time to revisit your weekly writing routine. Are you writing at your best times? Do you have strategies for showing up and getting into flow?

4. Write with others. Everyone deals with seasonal swings. Writing with others and talking about your scaries will shrink them to a much more reasonable size.

5. Just keep swimming. Dory’s advice from Finding Nemo is spot on, as usual. If you’ve ever spent Sunday evening dreading Monday, you probably also know that Monday is never as bad as you thought it was going to be. Just keep writing, and the September Scaries will fade.

Thanks for the writing you do, and thanks for reading mine. I'll see you next Friday.

Happy writing,

Trevor