[Writing Post] Confessions & Expounding on Advice from Rosemary Clement
Road to recovery…in a writing sense. My creative output has sucked this last quarter. No other way to put it. It’s not that the I wasn’t willing or that I haven’t beaten myself up over it. Or tried to force my way through it. I have. And you know what? It’s still sucked. I’m behind on a whole lot of stuff. Stuff I’ve been “meaning” to work on since April.
There are reasons. There are excuses. They are what they are. I’ve been on TWO business trips (in which I’ve gained a whole lot of knowledge and experience). Family is in town from out of country and staying with us. So things to do there. And sometimes the Day Job is ALL CONSUMING, but it is good work, important work, and it allows me the funds, healthcare options, and vacation time to do all the things I need to be able to take care of the business side of writing.
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Welcome to the Real World of Writing. All the “YOU MUSTS” yeah, no. As Rosemary Clement put it in a DFWCon “When to Ignore Good Advice” panel (or Lies my Writer’s Group Told Me – I think that’s her “subtitle”) YOU DO YOU. If YOU have to write something every day. Good. If you need to take time for self care. Good. (I now do yoga one night a week and tai chi two mornings a week at work and walk A LOT.) Does this mean I end up writing EVERY DAY – obviously not or this blog post wouldn’t be happening. BUT…BUT…but…I do write relatively regularly (I need to do the exercises more frequently) and when I’m not doing that I’m generally reading which is research and still vitally important.
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If you need to take a few weeks in an allergy medication fog so you can breathe? Breathing is good. I highly recommend it. But honestly, unless you’re doing really “Weird Fiction” I wouldn’t necessarily recommend writing while on Benedryl. TRUST ME on this one. But hey, YOU DO YOU. Pollen-Inspired fiction probably has just as much place in the grand scheme of things as anything else.
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I’ve also been on the bandwagon of listening to Podcasts While Commuting. I so should’ve done that long ago – also research. Also writing related good use of time. Not necessarily committing words to paper, but again not a Bad Thing. And if you’re EVER EVER stuck for story ideas? Just start listening to Stuff You Should Know or Stuff You Missed in History Class. SO MUCH FODDER! SO MUCH. I’ve also been loving Talk Nerdy, Writing Excuses, and most Star Talk episodes. So much to learn. So much to put into stories.
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So yeah, so maybe my output sucks right now. It’s busy (SO BUSY) and Pollen Season (NO! Fungus Season!). Barring the Crepe Myrtles incapacitating me further (they hate me), my output should be getting better soon. It’s a home stretch thing. I’m going to start some editing and thought priming and reading. It’ll all be good. Because it’s how I do it, and that’s okay…for me. You find what works for you.