Take 2
This began as a post about IWSG, but has now morphed to include a mini tirade about technology. I actually submitted a post this morning, but after I returned home from some errands, I discovered that the post was gone. Argh…if you were sitting beside me right now, you would hear my best expletives because I can really curse up a storm when stymied by technology. 😦 But, it’s probably not appropriate here, so…on to another version of the post from this morning.
I’m approaching the end – well, end is a strong word because if a publisher ever agrees to publish my WIP, I’ll probably need to edit my brains out – but, I digress. I’m approaching the end of my WIP, and I’m feeling – I don’t know – I guess I’m feeling anxious. The anxiety stems from feeling that some days when I sit down and write I give it everything. I slip into the writing zone: my fingers fly across the keyboard, and my internal editor is mostly quiet. In those moments, I can dissolve into the words, see the characters in motion, and even feel what each character is feeling. I love those moments. I think I write for those moments, for the instances where I’m set aside and my mind can simply create.
Then there are other days. The days where I sit at the computer and a sentence comes out, and I stare at it. Then I change a word and stare at that. Then I hear a car drive by and stare at it. Get the picture. Those days are frustrating, and right now as I approach “the end” of Silent Witnesses, they are annoying. I’m so close to the end that my next project beckons, and yet I still have those wasted days. I know others out there experience the same thing. Alex posted about the watching the squirrel problem today.
Does it frustrate everyone else as much as it does me?
Check out the writers of the IWSG. It’s a supportive network of writers across the blogosphere that post the first Wednesday of the month.
kimlajevardi 
I always go through separation anxiety at the end of a book. I write without reading what I’ve written, so I’m always worried I won’t like the story once the editing starts.
That sounds like a challenging way to write, but I imagine your internal editor is quiter during the draft phase. I read what I write as I add more, but I vasilate between liking the story and not all the way through. Maybe your way is less stressful. Thanks for posting!
Sorry I’m such a late poster! *blush* I always thought that the more I knew about technique, the easier writing would be, but that hasn’t been the case. The more I know, the more I have to edit, and the end result never quite satisfies. However, I’m sure every WIP is far better than the last, so I guess that’s something. 🙂
No worries, Lex. I’m a late responder. *bad blogger* I agree about the more you know. Sigh. I hope you’re right about each WIP being better than the last.
Oh I wish you luck. Your words resonate with me…I think we are in a close place. We can do this! Yes we can. Best wishes!
Thank you, Liza! We can do this. Best wishes to you as well. 🙂
Getting close to the end of your WIP is awesome!! Congrats.
Thanks! I still have some editing to do, but I think I’ll be able to begin my next project by March. It seems apropos to begin a new project as Spring rolls around.
Yes, those days are frustrating. I always hope that somehow I will break through it, and sometimes I do. Sometimes later in the day, in the midst of something else, I finally have a break through idea. The worst days are the ones that come two or three in a row with a lot of blah. Then a good day comes and it’s all wonderful and I try to forget the bad ones.
Here’s hoping for all good days for all writers in 2013!
I have a lot of days where the ideas also come later. I guess sometimes our minds need more thinking time. Thanks for the post and the good wishes. I hope you also have all good writing days in 2013!
Yes, my writing life is exactly as you’ve written – sometimes flowing so well I barely eat or drink, other times dragging each word from my fingers and then changing it two seconds later anyway. I have to go with it – I’m definitely not one of these writers who can write every day no matter what, I am slave to my Muse. It’s just about figuring out the best way for you.
Isn’t it funny how what works for each person is so different? I hope your Muse is very generous with his/her presence in 2013. Thank you for posting.
I have those days too… and sometimes they are so hard to push past:) That’s when I grab my laptop and go to a cafe, which always does the trick.
Another poster mentioned going to write outside. I’ll definitely have to try it. Thanks for dropping by.
I’m very easily distracted, which is why blogging affects my writing days so much. But when I’m in the writing zone and I finally look up to see an hour has gone by when it felt like five minutes, that’s a good day. 🙂
I love that feeling! It makes me think of what being in a sensory deprivation tank must be like, not that I’ve ever experienced it. 🙂 But the sensation of being completely and totally lost in the words. It’s what I love best about reading a good book also. Thanks for posting.
Well, good for you to have the patience to keep staring at that word. Maybe try a change of venue like a coffee shop or somewhere that sells treats you can buy for yourself if you write or edit that chapter or scene or paragraph or whatever (not that I ever play these games with myself). 🙂
Ohhh…treats. 🙂 Okay, I guess I’m getting distracted again. But I know what you mean, and you might be right. Maybe I’ll give it a shot. Thanks for posting.
Some days we are focused, others we are not. It’s all right even when we struggle.
Or see squirrels.
I suppose there is a purpose behind those days, but they do frustrate me sometimes. Thanks for commenting, Alex. 🙂