But this week – courtesy of May: You Write Your Novel – I finally decided that I’d had enough of my conscience niggling me every time I spied my writing notebook sitting on the arm of the couch; every time my imagination conjured up images of another inch-thick layer of dust settling onto my book with each passing week.
It was time to grab the reins once more, holler, “Hi-ho, Silver!” (well, maybe whisper it – us creative types can already have a bit of a “loopy” image, lol!), and grab my writing muse by the horns. (Hmm – I seem to be mixing my metaphors here. Whatever.)
The funny thing is that things are rarely as difficult as we imagine they’ll be. Instead of staring out into space for hours with a blank page before me, I actually found it refreshing – even fun – to return to my languishing characters and breathe new life into another chapter of their suspended lives. I realised that, in a way, I had actually missed my regular novel-writing sessions, the endorphin-buzz from finding my flow. From simply creating.
So I’m trying to remember this feeling, would bottle it if I could. And then when those troublesome twins, Lethargy and Complacency, threaten to wrap their bony little fingers around my writing hand, I’ll be able to easily lasso them by the positive memories of my last writing session.
And ride off into the sunset of “happily ever after”… :)
So, what about you? What “horse” have you been avoiding getting back on? Is it launching back into your writing (or some other creative pursuit), or even something to do with your career (maybe applying for a new, more fulfilling job) or relationships (starting over, or improving what you already have)? Whatever your horse is, know that that very first ride – although a little scary – will never be quite as bad as you’ve imagined. And once you start going in the right direction, you’re already heading off towards your own sunset. :)