On the one hand, there's this post by Gareth Powell, who draws a distinction between people who talk about writing, and who dream of being a writer, but who don't actually write anything. Writers write all the time; talkers just talk all the time.
On the other hand, there's this post from Emma Newman, who talks about the times of recharging necessary after periods of exceptionally high-volume outlays of energy. Output -- refractory period -- output -- refractory period -- output.
I've been burning the candle at both ends for months and months, dealing with lots of things that aren't related to writing. There are no breaks from it; as one thing winds down, another thing winds up to take its place. I'm expecting (hoping?) that things will settle down in a couple of months and writing can resume its place in a more balanced life. Another post tells me that this is irrelevant wimp talk. If I were serious about being a writer, I'd be writing anyway, chewing on the broken glass and stabbing myself with freshly sharpened pencils, forcing the blood to flow and ignoring the pain like a REAL man.
Er, a real writer.
I wonder sometimes if there is a gender-based perspective on the dichotomy of "Be self-aware and use self-care. It's a marathon, not a sprint." vs. "You're the one who wanted to be a writer! Shut up and take the pain!" If so, then I have to conclude that I'm actually a woman, which means I can stop shaving.
||| Comments are welcome |||
Help keep the words flowing.
On the other hand, there's this post from Emma Newman, who talks about the times of recharging necessary after periods of exceptionally high-volume outlays of energy. Output -- refractory period -- output -- refractory period -- output.
I've been burning the candle at both ends for months and months, dealing with lots of things that aren't related to writing. There are no breaks from it; as one thing winds down, another thing winds up to take its place. I'm expecting (hoping?) that things will settle down in a couple of months and writing can resume its place in a more balanced life. Another post tells me that this is irrelevant wimp talk. If I were serious about being a writer, I'd be writing anyway, chewing on the broken glass and stabbing myself with freshly sharpened pencils, forcing the blood to flow and ignoring the pain like a REAL man.
Er, a real writer.
I wonder sometimes if there is a gender-based perspective on the dichotomy of "Be self-aware and use self-care. It's a marathon, not a sprint." vs. "You're the one who wanted to be a writer! Shut up and take the pain!" If so, then I have to conclude that I'm actually a woman, which means I can stop shaving.
||| Comments are welcome |||
Help keep the words flowing.
I guess I can put away the shaver, too. I've always stumped for necessary breaks. "They" (who are "they"? you know, them!) say writers are always working, but everybody needs a vacation. These long stretches of what I call "real life" are a writer's vacation. That stress and emotional flapdoodle find their way into the next story. :-P
ReplyDeleteMy novel writing pace is pretty slow under the best of circumstances, and these aren't. I can only hope that this is more of an interregnum than a wandering in the desert.
DeleteReal writers write! Well, yes, I'm sure they do. But write All.The.Time? Puleeze...
ReplyDeleteEven Joyce Carol Oates, whose output would buy a significant number of us in paper, doesn't write All. The.Time.
Life happens. And, if you don't attend to it, where's the source for further scribblings? Or, a better question, what's the point of all the scribblings?
Of late I've had my own distracting real life concerns. I've just about managed to keep up a dribble of haiku. But that's it. Not enough attention/energy left over for this thing I love - the telling of stories.
As to whether or no I'm a wimp...that was decided a long time ago. Of course I am!
On the question of shaving, I already stopped. That's why I have a beard. So, off to the circus or fairground with me then, I suppose.
"buy" in the sentence about Ms. Oates should have read "bury". Sorry, I missed a syllable.
DeleteWhich, for a writer of haiku... :-}
When I come back to writing, I want the joy to be there. Without it, the output will be crap, which doesn't help anybody.
DeleteI know exactly what you mean, Tony. Right now, I'm dealing with something I don't fully have a grip on -- I could "force" myself to write, but I wouldn't enjoy it. There's not much point in slogging through a toxic waste field -- because that's what I'd turn out if I pushed myself now. Joy is good.
DeleteFor your face, maybe, but you might want one for your legs. : P
ReplyDeleteSo I've been reminded by scads of women. This is when it helps to be a life-long learner!
DeleteA friend once told me,"You can't write with a full head." I have finally accepted the truth of it, at least for me. My day job requires a lot of mental and emotional capitol. So by the time the evening rolls around, my emotional and mental bucket is empty so there are no words. I've been trying to work on my photography during those times because it is a different type of creativity for me. Though, truth to tell, if I still had to devleop negatives and do considerable time in the darkroom I probably wouldn't have that as an option.
ReplyDeleteI am struggling to write just 20 minutes a day, every day, but often my days end being task driven from waking to sleeping. I haven't yet got the hang of breaking out of work/task/life mode to write for 20min before going back to work/task/life, but I do think it is more about the journey than the destination.
So, good luck with your writings, and keep plugging away as you can. You are certainly not alone!
Having a full head and a tired mind is not conducive to writing, even without all the other demands of family, etc.
DeleteGood to know I'm not alone; may things improve for all of us!
I've long come to the conclusion that the "suck it up and write, wimps!" crowd... just don't have that much going on in their lives.
ReplyDeleteThere's a difference between "you ought to be writing instead of sitting in a cafe blathering about it" and "you ought to be writing instead of sitting in a cubicle/taking care of your kids/getting enough sleep to function." I was once told that if I didn't have time to write, I should just get up an hour earlier. At the time, I was getting three to five hours of sleep a night. Sometimes there just isn't any more time, or any more brain power, or whatever the issue is.
It's interesting that you saw the self-care side as the "feminine" side, because as a woman I experienced the opposite -- during what I call my non-writing years, every time I sat down with a notebook in my hand, I was told I was being selfish and given a long list of things both domestic and professional I had not yet done and should do instead. The haranguing (they thought they were giving advice) kept up until I went and did whatever they thought I should be doing.
Bottom line is, it's the writer who has to make these decisions for themselves and their own set of circumstances, not any other self-appointed "expert".