Workstation Ergonomics Tips

In April I posted ideas in regard to Deskercising your way to writing productivity.  Today we’ll talk about complimenting Deskercising with workstation ergonomics.  As authors, we tend to ground ourselves to our workstations; working frantically to meet deadlines and/or word-count goals.  That said, I’d like to share a few tips I’ve read about recently in regard to proper workstation ergonomics.  These tips should not only help to contribute to your productivity, but contribute to your health as well.

Think of your workstation in terms of zones:

The You Zone:  Posture in your chair is extremely important.  Make sure your chair is adjusted so that your feet are placed flat on the floor, your knees are bent at a 90-degree angle, and your arms lie flat on your desk.  Additionally, adjust your backrest so that it always provides support to the curve of your lower back.

This is Sammie’s “You Zone.” She doesn’t quite grasp the 90-degree angle thing.

The Primary Use Zone:  Identify this zone by sitting in your workstation chair and reaching your arms out in front of you and to the sides.  This reachable space should house your frequently used supplies and current task items.  Your monitor should be placed 18-24 inches away from you and at eye level.  To avoid pain and tension on your arms and neck, make sure that when using your keyboard and mouse your upper arms are resting at your sides and your hands are level with your wrists.

The Secondary Use Zone:  This is the area just beyond your Primary Use Zone.  This area is where you should keep items that get regular use but don’t require immediate attention.   Personally, I used to keep the cat’s treats in this zone, but have had to move them to the Primary Use Zone, in order to meet Sammie’s immediate needs.

The Infrequent Use Zone:  This is the area just beyond the Secondary Use Zone and used to house items used rarely.  Items you might keep here, if no room in the primary or secondary zones would be trays or files you don’t use very often.

I’m certainly no expert in the area if workstation ergonomics but what I can tell you is that since I’ve started utilizing the aforementioned tips I feel better while at my workstation.

One last thing, even though your workstation may be set up in the most perfect ergonomically correct way it is still a good idea to give your eyes an occasional rest from the computer screen, and get up on occasion to stretch your arms, legs, hands and neck.  Keeping yourself comfortable, rested, and free from the stiffness that comes from sitting stationary too long, should contribute to your writing creativity and productivity.

Feel free to post any other tips you may have!

 

 

 

Blog Visit at Fellow Author Mary Hughes Place

Hi, I’m visiting Mary Hughes blog. Stop on over and check out an excerpt from my romantic suspense novella, Cookies for Santa. If you leave a comment you will be entered into a drawing to win an electronic copy!

I met Mary through the Wisconsin Romance Writers Association and she is not only an awesome author, she’s a great blog hostess as well!

http://maryhughesbooks.blogspot.com/

Deskercise Your Way to Writing Productivity

As writers, when the mood strikes, we may find ourselves sitting at our computers all day long frantically pecking away on the keyboard to get our thoughts on paper before the thought-well runs dry.  The problem – When we finally come up for air, and return to reality, our hands, arms, backs, necks, and eyes are sore, Ugh!

A pain-free writer is a more productive writer so the question becomes…how can we make ourselves more comfortable and more productive?  Following are some helpful tidbits I’ve either read about, or have been told about in the recent past:

Eyes:  Look away from your computer screen periodically, and roll your eyes up and down and from side to side.  Also, close your eyes periodically for a minute or so just to give them a rest.

Hands and arms:  Stop pecking at your keyboard periodically and stretch your hands open, then ball them into a fist, and repeat the process.  Extend your arm, palm up, and apply downward and backward pressure against your fingers.  Flip your arm over and repeat the stretching process.  Don’t forget to apply the same type of pressure to your thumbs as well.

Back and neck:  Take a moment to lean back in your office chair and stretch your arms up and legs out.  Close your eyes, flex and extend your feet, open and close your hands.  Place your hands on your lower back and turn your head and shoulders slowly to each side.  Stand up and stretch, arching your lower back.  Bend your head gently from side to side, and then up and down, hold for a moment in each position, and repeat the process.  Slowly turn your head from side to side and hold for a few seconds, and then repeat the process a couple of times.

Try these exercises and see if it helps your writing productivity.  Do you have any other suggestions?  If so, please feel free to post them in the comments.

Try this:

And maybe in no time you’ll be able to do this off the back of your office chair:

Chew your way to creativity!

AUTHORS – Do you want to be more creative?  If you answered “yes” then pull out the Bubblicious, BubbleYum,  Hubba Bubba, etc.  Whatever kind of bubblegum tickles your fancy.

On more than one occasion I’ve read that if you want to retain more information or be more creative you should chew gum.  Supposedly, chewing increases the blood and oxygen flow to the brain, activating its memory centers, and just plain provides for a healthier brain.  A healthy brain is a happy brain, and thrives on activity.

I have to ask…Why is it that all the articles I find in regard to chewing being good for the brain only include chewing gum?  If chewing is what is good for the brain, then why don’t the articles say “chew on a chocolate bar to increase your brain health?”   Chewing is chewing, right?

Would you rather this:

 

 

…..or this?

Really, it’s a no-brainer, plus if you stick to a dark chocolate bar you reap the benefits of its flavonoids which are anti-oxidant compounds.  I’ve read articles that say flavonoids have a positive influence in lowering blood pressure, reducing blood clotting and improving blood flow to the heart and brain.  That said, I say eat a dark chocolate bar while writing your next novel, it should increase your creativity.

The Reading Reviewer

The Reading Reviewer

Hi, please stop by and visit me at The Reading Reviewer Blog today.  Mary Gramlich has awarded my romantic suspense novella, Cookies for Santa, a four star rating, and she’s featuring my book on her blog today.

 

 

The relationship between cholesterol and writing.

Did my husband’s cholesterol problem help me with my writing?  According to him it did.

In 2008 I, as well as, my tall, thin, husband underwent a wellness assessment.  Fully expecting to hear that I would have to make some sort of lifestyle adjustments as a result of my increasing weight I was pleasantly surprised to hear of my good blood work numbers.  Other than being told to shed a few pounds, I was in good shape.  Now the tall skinny guy standing next to me was not so lucky.  His cholesterol was too high and they wanted to put him on medication.  He refused. Rather, he took the bull by the horns and changed his eating habits.  That said, my eating habits changed as well.  Within six months of our change of diet, which began the second he walked out of the doctor’s office, my husband had dropped his bad cholesterol 77 points, nearly putting him in the range the doctor wanted.  In one years’ time he had his cholesterol under control, and as I result I lost nearly 40 pounds.  He lost weight as well, but his weight wasn’t an issue when he started.  Here we are, over four years later, still holding good cholesterol and weight levels.

So how did this help my writing, you ask?  Well Omega-3’s is the answer.  Anyone with cholesterol issues knows that Omega-3’s help keep blood platelets from clinging to one another, which defends against blood clots that can trigger heart attacks or stroke.  With our diet change, we increased our Omega-3 intake, mainly by adding Salmon to our diet more regularly; thereby, decreasing our intake of other fatty red meats. Recently I’ve read several articles about how Omega-3’s fatty acids are important for building highways within your brain for carrying information.  If you don’t consume enough Omega-3’s your brain will use other food nutrients to build these brain highways but the problem is these other nutrients are less effective.

Since I’ve been eating more Salmon/Omega-3’s I’ve completed three novels and two novellas, one of which, Cookies for Santa (FYI – I can only write about cookies now…we can’t eat them), was released by Melange Books last November, and one of which, Sincerely, Cupid, a Nick Spinelli Mystery, is scheduled for release in October of 2013.  I guess my Omega-3 superhighway is open for traffic.

End result, Rick feels he’s ultimately responsible for my recent publishing success.  His logic, if his cholesterol hadn’t been bad, we wouldn’t have changed our eating habits to include so many Omega-3’s, and my brain highway wouldn’t have been engineered properly, allowing me to write my books.  Hmm, it seems like a bit of a stretch, don’t you think?

Dinner last night!

Rick and I catching dinner!

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As a newbie author I’ve spent a great deal of time trying to figure out how to promote by book.  I’ve participated in a couple of blog hops, did some book signings, and used some social media avenues such as Facebook and Twitter.  In fact, I’ve tweeted until I was blue in the face.  What more can one do?  Please feel free to offer any ideas in the comment section below.

Now, the one thing I haven’t done is ask my family, friends, followers, and three fans to post reviews on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or wherever they purchased the book.  However, due to the importance of reviews, I’m on the verge of asking them for this favor though I feel a bit guilty about it.  After all, they’ve already purchased the book from an unknown author, actually read it (I hope), and now I want them to give me more of their valuable time by posting a review.

Why do I feel reviews are important, you ask…

1. Reviews get your book noticed by people who may not otherwise have seen it because each review magnifies your exposure.  Once you get reviews, you can broadcast them to the world.
2. Reviews offer proof that your book is a worthwhile purchase monetarily, and a good investment of one’s time.

Other than reviews on Amazon or Barnes & Noble where can an author turn to get reviews, you ask…

1. Check with your publisher, they may have a reviewing service they like their authors to work with.
2. Google…look for reviewers/bloggers that review books in your genre.  Many reviewers not only post their reviews to their websites or blogs but they also post to Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, etc.  Exposure…exposure…exposure.
3. Ask other authors in you writers’ organizations where they distribute their books for reviews.

Feel free to suggest any romance reviewers you use in the comment section below.

So, this is it, this is my call to all family, friends, followers and fans, if you can spare a few minutes please feel free to post your thoughts about Cookies for Santa on your blogs, websites, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc.

Below are quick links to sellers of Cookies for Santa:

Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Cookies-Santa-Valerie-J-Clarizio/dp/1612355102/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1355746513&sr=1-3&keywords=clarizio

Barnes & Noble:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/cookies-for-santa-valerie-j-clarizio/1113551820?ean=9781612355108

Lulu:  http://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?type=&keyWords=cookies+for+santa&sitesearch=lulu.com&q=&x=0&y=0