Guest Post: "Yoga & Stretching for Writers" by Sherri L. Dodd
- Kaecey McCormick
- 2 days ago
- 6 min read
It's FRIDAY, creatives!
It's the end of the work week, and if you're like me, you might have spent too much time sitting at a desk (or curled up in a chair) reading, drafting, revising... or scrolling a little more than you intended. With the weekend ahead of us, it's the perfect time to pause and check in with the body that got us through the days before.
Today's guest, author Sherri L. Dodd, is here to help us loosen up before we head into the weekend. Sherri previously joined me to discuss creative intuition, magick realism, and her cozy-paranormal Murder, Tea, & Crystals trilogy, which includes Moonset on Desert Sands, the second book in the series.
👉To learn more about Sherri and her books, click to jump to About the Author or About the Book!
In addition to being a writer, Sherri is an ACE-certified Personal Trainer and a certified yoga instructor. She's here today to share a few simply yoga poses and stretches created with writers (and our chair-bound aches!) in mind.
BONUS: Sherri is hosting three giveaways to celebrate her trilogy, each featuring a Murder, Tea, & Crystals gift basket filled with a signed book and an assortment of witchy, crystal-inspired treats. You'll find the giveaway details below.
For now, take a breath, drop those shoulders, and let's stretch. Here's Sherri!
-Kaecey
Yoga & Stretching for Writers
by Sherri L. Dodd
You have been staring at your screen since breakfast.
Noon-time looms as tension rips up your forearms while you key with fervent haste. Your shoulders contract forward, lurched and locking your neck into place. As you near the completion of your work, your body leans slightly forward as if propelled by a spinning wheel of intent beneath your waist like the roadrunner fleeing Wile E. Coyote.
Finished! Once this document, school paper or, maybe even, book chapter is finished, you let your shoulders sag in relief and lean back. Now, fully aware of your body again, you feel awful. You neck is stiff, shoulders are achy, and you possibly have the start of a headache. The first thing that will help is to get up and go to the restroom, grab a snack, or take your local lunch-hour yoga class. If the latter is not possible, return to your desk and ready yourself for a bit of seated yoga for writer’s recovery.
"The first thing that will help is to get up and go to the restroom, grab a snack, or take your local lunch-hour yoga class. If the latter is not possible, return to your desk and ready yourself for a bit of seated yoga for writer’s recovery."
Meow. A modified Cat/Cow (Marjaryasana-Bitilasana) is a great start. Settle into your sitz bones and mimic your usual movement on the mat. This is best done toward the edge of the chair to allow for a more pronounced Cow Pose. For guidance in alignment, you can slide your palms up and down your thighs. Start in an upright posture, sitting high with shoulders back, chin tucked, and chest out. Then, roll your glutes toward the seat while pulling the tummy inward to emphasize the curved flexion of your back. Breathe.
Next, sit up tall. While keeping your neck muscles relaxed, roll your shoulders forward and backward a few times, then relax them, hands down by your sides for a few shoulder lifts with sudden drops. Now, sweep your arms up and over your head. Hold. Bring one arm down behind your back, bend at the elbow, and flow into Bound Hands Pose (Baddha Hastasna). Gently clasp your hands behind your back while your chest stretches outward, fully opened from all your previous forward flexion. Breathe.
When you walked, you moved your lower body. Now, you have worked your spine, chest, and arms. Time for transverse plane movement, if able. A modified twist, Half Lord of the Fishes (Ardha Matsyendrasana) starts with sitting tall and shoulders back. On sitz bones as a solid base, keep your shoulders aligned with your chest and rotate to the right. Clasp the arm of your chair and hold the twist with a cleansing breath. Don’t force the movement, as you can return to start and repeat, reaching a bit farther each time. When finished, duplicate on your left.
"Taking regular screen breaks while writing is important, but writing isn’t the only screen-based activity that can leave you feeling stiff."
Finally, make sure to take keying breaks every 20-30 minutes and alleviate achy wrists by stretching your fingers wide, rolling your wrists, and opening, then closing into fists. Finish with palms pressed flat together in prayer hands.
Taking regular screen breaks while writing is important, but writing isn’t the only screen-based activity that can leave you feeling stiff. If you find yourself endlessly scrolling Instagram, pausing to move through the poses and stretches above can help ease the tension that comes with our sometimes-unavoidable spiral into modern-day digital madness.
~Sherri
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sherri was raised in southeast Texas. Walking barefoot most days and catching crawdads as they swam the creek beds, she had a love for all things free and natural. Her childhood ran rampant with talk of ghosts, demons, and backcountry folklore, inspiring her first short story about a poisonous flower that shot toxins onto curious children. Her classmate bought it for all the change in his pocket.
Not long after, her mother packed them up and headed to the central coast of California. Sherri has explored the vast area ever since, using it as a catalyst to her writing, from journaling to fitness articles to fiction. She holds a bachelor’s degree, is an ACE-certified trainer, a certified yoga teacher, and is pursuing her master’s, in holistic theology. She believes this helps her to see the world through a more colorful and accepting lens.
Her first real step into writing was the non-fiction fitness book, Mom Looks Great – The Fitness Program for Moms published in 2005, and maintaining its accompanying blog. In fiction, her publisher labeled her 2024 debut novel as a paranormal thriller. She would have described it as a cozy murder mystery with generous dashes of magic realism, showing that she loves to merge genres. Her Murder, Tea & Crystals Trilogy released book one - Murder Under Redwood Moon - in March 2024. Book two - Moonset on Desert Sands - released in March 2025, and the final book in the series – Hummingbird Moonrise – All three books became an Amazon #1 Best Seller in the Occult Supernatural genre.
Connect with Sherri on Instagram @sherri.dodd.author or at www.sherridodd.com.
ABOUT THE BOOK
With a traumatic year of fending off a serial killer behind her, Arista has settled contentedly into her temporary home with Auntie in Sedona, Arizona. She enjoys her new job selling all things metaphysical and even has her eye on the hot security guard, Dakota, after her recent breakup with Shane.
But a series of new fainting spells has her worried, and when Auntie witnesses one, they decide the answer lies in her home of Boulder Creek. However, returning means not only dealing with her breakup and its heartache but also the possibility of drawing her bloodthirsty Uncle Fergus to her once safe haven in the redwoods. And this time he has recruited an even more dangerous alliance.
Arista's closest bonds will be strengthened, but the mounting tension of a death in the desert, a stalker on the streets, and the relentless pursuit of Fergus puts her in dangerous territory, and escaping sorrow proves impossible.
You can grab your copy of Moonset on Desert Sands and the other books in the Murder, Tea, & Crystals trilogy on Amazon, Bookshop.org, or through Barnes & Noble. And don’t forget to add it to your GoodReads shelf.
BOOK GIVEAWAYS
There are THREE amazing giveaways to celebrate Moonset on Desert Sands. Here's what you need to know:
Enter at The Muffin from August 24 through September 6
Enter at Cozy Home Delight from August 25 through September 1
Enter at A Wonderful World of Books from September 8 through September 21
Each giveaway will have a Murder, Tea & Crystals gift basket that includes:
a signed copy of Moonset on Desert Sands
a pillar Crystal Journey candle
a Heart of Darkness soap
Gravenstein Apple lip balm from Three Sisters Apothecary
one Septarian palm stone (this crystal is mentioned in Moonset on Desert Sands)
a small raw Amethyst (mentioned in Murder under Redwood Moon)
one box of Oracle
cards
an adorable little polymer clay witch trinket/pendant
Enter all three to increase your chances of winning!
Thoughts about Sherri's post? Do you do yoga at your desk? Tell me about it in the comments or send me a message!
Happy reading and happy writing!
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