Tuesday, October 29, 2013

You don't have time for a muse


 We writers are an eccentric lot.  We love our quirks and idiosyncrasies.


Civilians – “non-writers” – find us mysterious and we love that.  There are few things with greater cache than mystery.

Mystery allows us to create a sacred space that is untouchable.  Our loved ones respect it, even tiptoe around it. 

If we have incense and chimes, or white noise and blinders, it simply adds to our inscrutability.  The only other room in the house with such an invisible force field around it might be the bathroom.

The downside of all the enigma is that we abuse it.

Admit it.  It’s all too easy to close the door, dim the lights, pull up a blank document and stare.  For a little while.

Some of us have been known to open multiple screens.  One blank document, one Words with Friends, a YouTube and Wikipedia.  We can rationalize all of these as mind-freeing, meditative research.

We are masters at minimizing when prying eyes come near…What?!!  I’m writing!

Well that just won’t do.

Pablo Picasso said, “Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working.”

So set aside your alter ego, perfectionism, and get to work. 

Set a goal for the amount of time you’ll write every day.  Make it manageable.  Small is good.  Small does not intimidate.

Bring in the kitchen timer, set it and WRITE.

And write BEFORE you do ANYTHING else.  Really.

Chances are good that when the timer goes off, you’ll have a bit more in you and not want to stop.  But even if you do stop, you can stop with a measure of satisfaction.  You accomplished something extremely important. 


You wrote today.

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