If you’re a writer, then you know
what I mean. There’s comes a point on
the measuring stick of fatigue when you open the document (the document of your amazing work in progress) and
you stare at it. You know exactly where
you want to go with it (you’ve left it all the notes) and writing it will be
amazing. That’s what you thought last
night anyways. But tonight? Tonight it just looks like too much. The day has been too long, and there isn’t enough
left of you for you to create story. You
have nothing left. There’s no more water
in this well.
Perhaps if you’re a writer you don’t
actually know what I mean. Perhaps you
writers out there are wise enough to know that writing should be done in the
morning, when you’re fresh. Maybe you’ve
been too smart to face this struggle.
Maybe I’m the only one out there who has ever felt this lost for
words.
But of course, if there’s anything
I’ve learned from being around for eighteen years, it’s that people are never
quite as unique as they think they are.
Their struggles have all been struggled by others, their problems have
all been solved (or not) by those before them, and others have shed tears over
the same griefs that haunt them. There’s
nothing new under the sun.
But isn’t there a lot to be said
for individuality? Of course! People are amazing, because we beat so many
odds, we conquer so many of our battles, and so many of us are able to live incredibly
full lives, regardless of the number of years they are given.
But of course, those remarks up
there do seem a bit sappy. A bit too
optimistic. After all, for as many
people that are living fully, there are probably two other people wasting their
precious gift of life. Right?
So you see, if you’re a writer, you
probably know what I mean. When you can’t
write, you write about not being able to write.
And then that piece morphs into an opinion piece about humanity. And of course, in writing a piece 400 words
long about how you have no words, you’re sort of proving that you really do
have words, just not the right ones.
Never the right ones.
Writers. Seriously, someone needs to get some sense
into them.
But this one needs to go to
sleep. Because the day has left me lost
for words.
Nice morph/pivot!
ReplyDeleteWhat are you working on that left you word-free and word-less, unworded and de-worded yesterday?
Book two of my trilogy! I came up with a bunch of new plans for the government and plot, which makes the whole story more intense, so I was really excited to be writing it. Then I just sort of fell flat for a couple of days. I'm back to it now though.
ReplyDeleteI do have another book - a YA mystery - that I'm working on on the side though. I enjoy that one too, especially since my main character has so much in common with me.
I think we approach writing differently. Nothing dries me up faster than knowing where I'm going. I once got 60,000 words into a novel and had the next and last 10,000 clearly in mind as I drove for a finish--but that 'clearly in mind' killed my own interest in what I was doing.
ReplyDeleteNever finished!
I wish I had more of your way of doing things. I'll obsess over knowing what is coming next in my story, and whether or not I have it planned out, and so on. If I could just lighten up and allow things to surprise me, then sometimes I think that would be helpful.
ReplyDeleteAfter posting that comment, I took a look at my 60,000 words. Seven years since I looked at it and it's full of surprises! Maybe, just maybe....
ReplyDeleteYou should write it! That would be so exciting.
ReplyDelete