Life. It gets in the way no matter what. The house painting project that has taken over our livesfor 5 weeks now will come to a close this week for the most part.
In the meantime, I've been doing all else around the house (plus helping paint) since my husband is working and painting his life away.
So, you say, it's summer, what else have you got to do? Oh, nothing. No project I decided to pick up and have gotten nowhere with! Maybe it's selfish, but I feel like this was my summer to start this dream I've been given and it hasn't turned out that way at all. And why is it always MY writing that suffers?
Writing is frustrating, but not writing is depressing. At least the frustration will take me somewhere. But what can I do? Looks like I'll be packing writing time in with the school year.
Screwed if I do and screwed if I don't. What comes up and interferes with your best writing intentions? Have you found a way to avoid it?
"Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds...encouraging one another" Hebrews 10:24-25
Life does always seem to get in the way. The only way I ever make it through any project is to keep working, even if that means only a little bit here and there.
ReplyDeleteRight now I'm way behind the crazy schedule I set for myself on a project, but I'm still making some progress. I may not be where I want to be on it, but the forward motion keeps it going.
I got similar advice in Stephen King's writing book. He said that when reading (which he advises writers to do a lot of), readers need to learn to take long swallows and short sips. I am not so good at the short sips I guess. When I sit down to a project I get thrown off if I can't work for a longer amount of time.
ReplyDeleteSo thanks for the reminder Jeff! I've got to learn to work whenever I can, whatever amount of time I can!
I can zone-in for five hours or five minutes, switch click, I'm there, switch click, I'm stiring the sauce or folding laundry. What I've found is that even though I'm not working, I really am. It perculates just below the surface so when I get a few minutes, it bubbles out.
ReplyDeleteOver the years I've trained myself to write like that, I had to. Kids, work, job, had to. Some of my best lines have come from hours and hours of painting, roller time, very soothing and oh so nice when done.
That's what I need to learn to do. I work better when I have a structure to my day, summer makes me so very lazy. So I'm thinking the school year is actually going to help me keep with my writing.
ReplyDeleteAnd you're right, I did do lots of thinking while I painted!