Saturday, November 2, 2013

November 2, 2013

After 28 days away, getting re-oriented to home life takes time. You all know what I'm talking about: laundry, laying in fresh groceries, rounding up dead house flies, chatting with the neighbours- the usual.
     However, today is the day for getting back to work on my manuscript (as opposed to viewing research pictures and notes and considering the ambiance felt while visiting the story locale.) I am resisting washing my floors as a preferable option to writing. I know that once I start I'll be in love with my characters and their stories and be able to continue easily. It's the getting started that's tricky.
     As much as I love being a writer, there are times when I balk at starting the task. Not sure if it's fear (my story may be terrible), laziness (it's so much work, so many hours required to finish), or pure procrastination (tomorrow is a better day to start.)  Maybe it's simply that 28 days interrupted the habit of writing everyday allowing a new habit of not-writing to get established.
     Whatever it is, today I am just going to DO IT! and get back the writing habit.
     What side-tracks do you follow when you know you really want to write or paint or quilt or dance or...?

10 comments:

  1. I do exactly the same. I want to write, decide when I'm going to start, but then when it comes to it, I hesitate. I call a friend to chat, walk the dog anything to put off that first sentence. I do this because I have a love / hate relationship with writing. I'm compelled to write the stories in my head but I'm afraid I won't be able to do them justice.
    I'm glad I not the only one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for sharing, Marlow. Calling our writing a love/hate relationship sums it up quite well. Here's to squashing that doubting voice in our heads and prolific writing in the future.

      Delete
  2. Blog update: although it may not be much, I did manage one hour of edits on Book #1. Upward and onward. All progress starts with small steps.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Good luck. I too love to procrastinate and then often day-dream about scenes when I'm doing something else. Maybe it's all part of how we write.You're so right - you will start writing and will fall in love with your story/characters and forget to do lots of other things at times. And I still believe at times we just need to write and maybe it's our way of dealing with stress and forgetting reality for a bit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mary, I agree. Writing is often a writers way to make sense of the world and or deal with stress. Day-dreaming or rumination is a necessary part of writing however we do need to then transfer to the page.

      Delete
  4. What sidetracks do I follow? TV or drawing floor plans (sometimes where my characters live 'cause that seems more fun than actually writing the scenes in my head, I just visualize what's happening as I draw.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dar - I am laughing here about the floor plans. I too have designed houses for my characters - you are right - it's more fun that writing it!

      Delete
  5. I'm with you. Cleaning floors can become very appealing when I know I should sit down in front of my laptop. For me it's the fear (knowledge?) that the story I put down on paper will never be as good as the one in my head.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hah! My entire life is one big sidetrack. But if I can make myself get up in the very early hours of the morning to write before I can think about all those other wonderful things I like to do, then the writing comes out. And there's something about those early hours that keeps the fear at bay. Maybe it's because the rest of the sane world is still sleeping, so my characters have their chance at life and no one is watching or listening.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Diana and Maggie - your comments confirm that as writers we have a tendency to want to avoid our writing in any for one or more of many reason. Maggie - happy to hear your early morning helps keep the fear at bay - for me early morning is the opposite. At that time of day my barriers are the weakest and my fears break through. Whatever our demons, we can prevail as writers - it is who we are!

    ReplyDelete