Today, 14/3/18, is the fifth instalment of a new series of posts; Writing Advice Wednesday, where my advice to new writers will be shared once every two weeks.
It is important to remember that my opinions are not law in any way, shape, or form! Not everyone has the same experiences as I do in this field but it is valuable to share opinions on topics to try and help others!
The concept itself seems simple enough; it can happen to anyone at any point and it will destroy their sleep schedule for the next few weeks due to their body needing to catch up on their sleep. For example, I tend to accidentally pull all-nighters toward the latter end of the semester, or over the holidays from term due to having free time to binge-watch every single show that I have missed out on since departing for another term at university. And despite having only two modules this semester, I have still managed to pull an all-nighter or two.
Of course, everyone does this for different reasons. For example, when NaNoWriMo or the subsequent Camp NaNoWriMo events take place, it is not uncommon for people to stay up all night to catch up on their lost time and absent words. However, I will be advising you on how to pull a productive all-nighter with the preconception that you are not intending to stay up to do work.
There are many ways to manage staying up all night, but there are many important things that must be prepared in advance, should you not be living alone.
1. Hoard food in your room to make sure you can eat during the night - when I pulled all-nighters two years ago, during the summer holidays to binge watch InuYasha, a Feudal Fairy Tale, on my best friend's insistence, I found myself having to sneak snack foods upstairs so I didn't have to creep downstairs at 4am to acquire a bag of crisps or a chocolate bar to keep my stomach's excessive growling from waking the rest of the family up. Should you be living on your own, the idea of having to creep downstairs to avoid waking anyone else up is not an issue of great significance, however, it is one to anticipate regardless. You will find yourself getting hungry several hours into your quest to stay up all night.
2. Along the same lines as the previous piece of advice, if you can acquire a water bottle, fill it up once before you go to "sleep" and once or twice again during the night. If your family or housemates happen to be anything like my Dad, then you'll understand the horror when you go downstairs in the early hours of the morning, not having slept a wink yet, and have to insist that you are just getting a glass of water in order to keep yourself from being parched in your sleep.
3. Give yourself something to do - a motivation to stay awake. Several times, when I have been required to stay awake all night, I will have found something to do in advance. A lot of people that I know, claim that I am a ridiculously loud typer, this limits what I can actually do on my laptop during an all-nighter, or at least while I am away from university. When I am at home, my room is right beside my parents' and they tend to fall asleep to the sound of my fingers against the keyboard as it reminds them of heavy rain. Should you be in a similar boat - find something you can occupy yourself doing, watch films, read stories etc. If you have the advantage that I do, whilst at university, of having a bedroom far away from the rest of the rooms of my housemates, I am able to write until the early hours of the morning! Giving yourself something to do whilst staying up all night allows the mind to remain stimulated. You are, also, apparently less likely to sleep if you have been facing a glaring screen up until approximately half an hour before you attempt to sleep. This is because your brain is still alert after processing such stimuli. If you want to stay awake, use your computer! It sounds ridiculous, but the glare should keep your eyes and brain alert!
Thank you for reading!
And remember:
Per Ardua Ad Astra!
- Imogen. L. Smiley
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