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Wednesday, September 7, 2011

The Truth of "Time"


This post is my contribution to Alex Cavanaugh’s “Insecure Writers Support Group.”    For More information and to find other bloggers who are participating, clickhere.  

28,717. 

That number represents the word count on my current project as of 9:00 yesterday morning.  Last week sometime, I forced myself to sit down and log 1000 words.  Other than that, it remained in an untouched folder on my flash drive for close to a month. During that time I wrote blog posts here, and for a regional magazine, and completed bi-monthly public relations articles for the local newspaper I’m being paid to write.  So I can’t cop to “writer’s block.”  But when it was time to sit down and move forward with the story I’ve been working on since this winter, I veered away from the computer.

This year spring arrived, then summer, delivering a basketful of emotional produce related to endings and beginnings associated with our eighteen year-old only child.  I felt the need to work my way through all that fruit, to juggle a few oranges and to chew on the ripe plums at the bottom of the pile before I could focus on my story again.   So I gave myself a "pass."  With the arrival of Labor Day, the summer milestones were all crossed off.   

Time to get back to the thing, right?  

Yet, here I am, writing this post on writing insecurities, instead of, well, writing.

So many times writers are asked:  “How do you make the time to write?”  I have a theory and it is pretty simple.  There is always time to write, we simply have to make a choice to find it.  Over the last few months, I’ve chosen not to.  Now I’m worried.  The distractions are over, and if I mean it, it’s time to call my own bluff.  


PS…There’s hope.  Word count as of 3:00 p.m. Tuesday: 30,057.

18 comments:

Anne Gallagher said...

Don't chew yourself up over not writing. Your only child has just left the house. If I were in your shoes, I'd be sitting in bed crying every day until she came home for Thanksgiving. I'm surprised you're actually still standing. Working even.

Love the thing with the fruit. Love plums.

Unknown said...

Great posts. I have been suffering a lot from distractions lately. This has been a helpful post for me.

jabblog said...

You're not alone! People with far fewer distractions - let's call them LIFE - still fail to fulfil their own intentions.

jabblog said...

Incidentally, I'm getting warnings of malware on the Insecure Writers Support Group.

Old Kitty said...

Hello!! My first time on your lovely blue blog! I think it's always good to rest and just do other things than writing that all important ms. It's also good to sort life's things out first too.

Good luck with finding the correct time for you to continue your writing. Take care
x

Anonymous said...

Sometimes we just have to type when we can, and at the end of the day it adds up to a couple hours or so. Good luck with WIP and have a great day!

J.B. Chicoine said...

It sure does take a lot of gumption to sit down and focus, especially when you've had so many distractions. I often find myself in the same state--I can't afford to beat myself up over it, but the only way to get beyond it is to sit and write, even if it's not very good--it's at least words in a document or on paper, and that's progress. Glad to see you've made some headway! :)

Hart Johnson said...

I think your decision to concentrate on endings and beginnings was probably wise... the time won't come back and it was best to savor it. But yes... time to form the habit again. I think getting back to writing can be really hard---I intend to never NOT write again... that's how hard I think getting back to it is. Pick the time, make the commitment, and do it...

Wine and Words said...

Basketful of emotional produce! Ha! I can so relate to this. I am not a writer, nor an aspiring one...but I relate to the produce :)

Tonja said...

I always make time for what's important to my kids, but not always for myself. That's wonderful that you are back on track now.

I'm a new follower.

Nicki Elson said...

See, you're already making progress! But I've been exactly there. It took almost a year and a half after getting that first novel published to FINALLY focus on the next and make real progress. I kept thinking I didn't have time, but then I realized---I didn't have time to write the first one either, but I did it.

Congrats on getting that 18 year old moved on to the next phase. :)

Ella said...

I love that you are pushing yourself to move on. Life does derail us...but it also makes what we right more authentic. This is a difficult time, allow your feelings to surface. xXx

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Liza, you said it - it's a choice!
I think it also has to do with the seasons in our lives. Now is your season - go!

L. Diane Wolfe said...

I can relate. My next book was supposed to be done last month, but I'm still several chapters away from the first draft.

Golden Eagle said...

This resonates for me. I have a goal of finishing my current WIP by November, in time for NaNoWriMo--but I haven't been writing as much as I could. It is true that there's a decision to write; I just need to make it.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I didn't do so well over the summer either. I hope I do better now that school is back in session.

M Pax said...

Try allotting a very small bit of time to get yourself back into it ... say 20 minutes. It works for me, when I'm ... distracted. :)

Mel Chesley said...

Woo! Keep that word count rising! I'm the same way though, I would rather blog, write a short story from a prompt, etc. I have to make myself work on my stories and then I get into them, get excited and can't stop. Hope the same goes for you! Good post.