“Is your writing process disciplined and consistent? Or do you ever find yourself (periodically) playing hooky – from disciplined writing- for a significant period?”
When I first starting writing in 2001 I felt exhilarated. No more waiting for other authors to write what I wanted to read. I’d just write it myself. I started writing that spring. I remember how hard it was to begin. I stared at a blank page for some time before I remembered I had a delete key. If I didn’t like what I wrote. it was history. I had to do a lot of research for that first book. I spent hours surfing the web for content I could use. It was just wonderful.
I had a schedule I always followed. Most of my morning was given over to writing, and in the afternoon I did errands, housework, etc. I would never have dreamed of leaving my computer at home when we went on vacation. I might get inspired, and anyway, I didn’t want to miss a day of writing.
Fast forward to the present. My dedication has definitely waned. I’m retired now so you’d think it would be easy to schedule writing time, but that hasn’t been the case. In my defense there’s so much to do after you retire. I belong to several groups that meet either weekly or monthly, and I enjoy going very much. Also, I’ve found out how much I like sleeping late. In the past I was up at least by seven, but now that I’ve retired. I don’t set a clock. I get up a few hours later now. The upshot is that my morning writing time is gone. I’ve also been beguiled by lovely walks in nature with my dogs, spending time with my husband, reading, and doing a million other things. In short, I no longer have a disciplined, consistent writing plan. I have a book I’m working on, but if I don’t shape up it’ll never see the light of day. The problem is that there are so many delightful things to do that there isn’t time for everything.
I’m working on it, though. Maybe tomorrow.
Happy Fourth of July!
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