As Halloween approaches, we count down the days as our excitement grows. For horror fans, it's one of our favorite (formative) holidays, its eerie enchantment shaping our lifelong love of things that go bump in the night. That nostalgia, the magic of Halloween, never truly leaves us — and we savor its seasonal charm each year by immersing ourselves in our celebrations.
Sadly, around the concentrated commerce of the spooky season and increasing commitments in our distracted lives, the holiday is here — and over — before we know it.
Halloween Ends, but your Halloween mindset — pausing to be present in the moment — doesn't have to.
While horror fans continue the spooky aesthetic, ambience, and content during the rest of the year, how often do you truly slow down (like you do at Halloween) to engage with and enjoy daily tasks — especially as readers and writers?
Around the grind, our love for and enjoyment of reading and writing often takes a back seat when we're under pressure to deliver a deadline. As a self-confessed distracted writer, finding time to read for research or sit down and smash that wordcount is hard enough, let alone that elusive golden egg — taking time to actually rest, and read or write simply for pleasure (without feeling guilty as hell).
One small change that's truly transformed my system is creating a reading and writing (W)ritual. As unique as each reader and writer, your Writual is your routine to consistently nurture your writing in order to get results. (What's Your Writual? Read here to outline yours (and see mine!))
In addition to enhancing focus, an integral part of my Writual is romanticizing: drawing on my Halloween mindset by reading and writing mindfully, both of which are greatly helped by implementing spooky stationery and practical tools to help me focus and manifest. A reflective and conscious commitment to slow our pace, quiet our minds, and immerse ourselves in the act itself, mindful reading and writing allows us to press pause and romanticize the experience — to savor the atmosphere, soak up every word, and actually enjoy it.
Even if you don't have an unhealthy obsession with beautiful seasonal stationery (*cough, cough*), taking time to physically mark passages that resonate, to regularly record your thoughts in a journal, or to take research notes by hand are all mindful acts that encourage you to engage fully with the words on the page.
In addition to improving your relationship with the text itself — whether that's retaining knowledge, sparking creativity, or simply an emotional connection — this practice of slowing allows you to pause and not only appreciate the small moments but participate in them.
As the world spins madly on, taking time for ourselves will only become more difficult. Romanticizing your reading and writing — invoking the spirit of Halloween in your creative and practical endeavours — is a simple way to take care of yourself.
Don't just take my word for it; the benefits of mindful reading have been noted by medical professionals, from promoting mental health to cognitive improvement in adults, and a range of developmental advantages for children.
And that's the ethos behind our Writual set. It's designed to help you practically implement the intentions of our Hex Libris blog: to romanticize regular reading sprints (for both research and pleasure, encouraging mindful reading as part of your self-care routine), and to enhance your writing focus and enjoyment to build productive writing habits. (To manifest your own Writual, click here!)
Our first-ever Writual set — the Jessica Rose x HoL-loween Collection — was named after the nostalgia and magic of Halloween, a joy and mindset intended to be invoked and experienced all year round. It was so special to curate this collection, and knowing that so many of our readers and writers share our excitement is amazing!
