Happy Sunday folks! We’re back for another week of writing! I’m hoping all the weirdness stays in last week and doesn’t follow into this week with the time change and the full moon and Friday the 13th. I really will need a two week vacation if I have to go through another chaotic week like the last one. I just want to write, dammit.
It’s no secret that I’ve been struggle busing again. I have too many WIPs and I can’t seem to focus on any one for any length of time. I keep getting new ideas too. I’m like a squirrel dodging traffic, jumping from idea to idea. Which means I often don’t end up writing much of anything. Am I sounding like a broken record? I feel like I’ve said this a lot lately but it could also just be that it’s been bouncing around my head for weeks like a DVD screensaver.
I tried something new this weekend though. Well, not new, but I hadn’t done it in a while. I took my laptop to Starbucks and spent a few hours working there. I love having my office at home, but I spend so much time in it that it has stopped feeling like a working space and more like an all-in-one space. I veg in here. I read. I browse the web. I’ve blurred the lines of productivity that I had when I first started delineating time for writing in here.
Sometimes you have to change things up. So I went elsewhere. Last time was back over the summer I think, when I was working on getting prompts done ahead of schedule for my SJI trip. I felt I could be more productive because I was giving myself different boundaries. I couldn’t sit there forever, and if I was going to be there with my laptop, I was going to get something written in that time. I don’t know why I can’t make that delineation at home anymore, but I need to work on that.
I went out again today, too. I’d made plans with a writer friend to meet at the Barnes & Noble near my house, which was part of what inspired me to go out yesterday. Their Starbucks cafe had a lot more seating than the little shop I was at yesterday, but it was fun to spend a few hours just chilling with her and talking through some stuff.
We don’t get to see each other as often as we used to, despite working together and chatting on our company IM all day, so there was a lot of catching up on other things too. General gossip and talking about our weekends in addition to the writing things. I was starting to struggle with picking a project to work on, but knowing I had someone else there working on something motivated me to just do it. In the end I chose to work out some more of the sequel to Awakening, since she is its biggest fan and really wants more of the story. If I ever finish it and put it on here, you’ll have her to thank for that.
I think that’s something I didn’t realize I was missing about NaNo, though. The community. Having other people there writing alongside me, physically or digitally, kept me going. Writing is such a solitary endeavor. But you aren’t alone. There are so many of us all walking this same path. Having others to lift you up and support you, to give you encouragement when your WIP is in flames, it’s necessary if you want to hold on to what little sanity you have left.
Between yesterday and today, I’ve written almost 3k words across various projects. (I count these posts in those totals, too.) That’s almost as much as I wrote all last week combined. Granted, I had a couple rough nights, but still. I haven’t quite managed to build the momentum I want for this year and it’s already March. I’m feeling a little daunted, but I’m also determined. I have help. I have tricks to keep me motivated.
And I have prompts to keep me quasi-focused! Here’s what’s on the docket for this week.
382. What is one job you’d never do, no matter how much you were paid?
383. Do you think it is wise to remove all negative people from your life, even if some of them are family? If so, why?
384. What funny and memorable things did you do as a child?
That first one feels like something I’ve done before, recently even. Still, these are some good prompts. Should yield some decent posts.
Well, daylight savings is kicking my butt and I need to get some real sleep. Tomorrow is gonna be rough. Mostly because it’s supposed to be almost 70F and I am very much thinking it sounds like I might be “sick” tomorrow. *sigh* If only. After taking one Monday off a couple weeks ago, I don’t think I’ll ever do it again. But maybe a half day is in order? Not likely. Unless some rich benefactor wants to gift me like, $50k? That would be cool.
Did I mention I need sleep? I’m gonna go do that now. Have a great Monday! And don’t forget to wash your hands! Good night!
PS-Like these prompts? Like the short stories I write based on these prompts? Want to show your support? Give the blog a follow! Leave a comment! Buy me a coffee! I put a lot of time and effort into these posts and your support means the world to me! Ok, now go out there and write!
Closet Full of Notebooks 