I'm going to break from the standard form for this post and get a little personal, if I may.
Much as I hate to admit it, I really haven't been writing consistently for some time. I've just finished a week long holiday from work, and while I enjoyed it I realize that I wrote very little during that time. I fear that it's becoming a problem, and that my ideas are atrophying each day that I don't write something.
I find the the inherent isolation of the writer often works against me personally. I'm doing better than I have been, but when it comes to writing, I honestly don't have the drive to do it most of the time. The pressures of the real world often make me want to just switch off when it comes to doing anything more than idle web browsing/socializing. Even though I have had a few stories published, I still find myself feeling a bit like a phony. I suppose many beginning writers also struggle with this quest for legitimacy. I sometimes find it difficult to write this blog. I feel that my instructional tone is not warranted because in the grand scheme of things, I've done nothing of note. I hope that I've helped at least a few of you, and that you will continue to read, regardless of my own position in things.
Have any of you felt this way before? If so, what are some good ways to combat these feelings and get back to writing?
I have felt, and do feel, this way more often that I would like. The only way out for me is to go back to journaling (an important part of keeping me sane and balanced) and make myself sit down for a finite amount of time three or four days a week (not every day - I get overwhelmed even by the things I love) and put words on a page.
ReplyDeleteThey don't have to be good words. But they have to be something other than serial blankness.
I'm not exactly a writer (unless you count my blog), but I am familiar with how the lack of time can affect your writing. I go through phases where I become very active in the art of journaling. There really is nothing more fulfilling than scribbling your thoughts to paper, effectively making a time capsule...but before too long the Real World interferes, time is short, and another notebook is forgotten.
ReplyDeletePerhaps you can carry a little memo pad with you at all times, and jot down an idea whenever inspiration strikes? Maybe in the minutes when you wake up or right before you go to bed? Then, when time permits, you can revisit these notes and the Fiction Factory resumes.
~SP
I used to be committed to several physical journals, and it took me a while to get into the whole web posting deal. Sometimes I get a little sad when I realize that literature is slowly being reduced to rash publishings on the internet. However, I think that certain blogs are a good way for anyone and everyone to put their mind out there and not have to worry about a fire destroying it. I mean, in some ways it's nice, but in other ways it's a little bittersweet when you realize just how drastically our generation is morphing.
ReplyDelete