Oh poor wee blog how I have neglected thee. It has been a manic week or so. Sick kids, home renovations, family visits. There have not been many free seconds of late. I need solitude to write. I need peace, I need quiet, I have to limit distraction.
The last little while has not been horrible, far from it. The sick kids, well ya, that is a bit of a challenge, nobody likes to see their children all snotted up. The home renovations, hard work, but the ends justified the means. I have a totally remodeled living room. I finally have my modest, but cherished book collection on display. The family visit, long overdue. It has been wonderful seeing my parents interact with my infant daughter Zoey. They are wonderful grandparents, Zoey is a lucky little girl.
That has been what's up. My normal schedule has been thrown off course. I have been too busy to write. By the time I get my free moments, my peace, my quiet, I am usually mentally drained from the comings and goings of the day that was. Excuses, excuses...? Am I exaggerating the madness? Is this not, as my buddy Derek mentioned the other night, simply the making up of excuses, in an attempt to to hide the fact that I am battling writer's block? Has the bastard returned? Perhaps.
The 'real' world takes precedence, as it should. Life more often than not needs to be dealt with, before one can think about playing with words. Yes, I have been in a bit of a creative funk. I believe though, that this has had more to do with a lack of me time, than any sort of mental block. I might have a reputation of being able to pound something out quickly, but damn it, I need time to research, I need time to discover my muse. It isn't always as easy as it appears.
Blogging is hard work sometimes. It doesn't pay all that well either.
Well, all I can say is your absence makes the heart grow fonder for all of us who follow your stimulating/provocative and edifying blog :)
ReplyDeleteWriters block, mental block...who cares. I certainly don't.....
Thank you some much for the kind words. You made this old hack blush.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, I feel pressured to put out content when life in the real world gets the better of me. Then, I find that if I force myself to put something out, I hate it. So, I've learned to just...wait..and it will come, eventually...most of the time at the oddest times (when I'm not even thinking about it) and then POW! all of a sudden, I have an idea and I MUST write it down RIGHT NOW. I like it better that way for me, though, then I don't pick it apart or second guess myself. Perspective.
ReplyDeleteI like your blog and it doesn't matter if you post every day, once a week, once a month, or once a year, I always enjoy it!
You're right, it is hard work...and nope, it doesn't pay very well AT ALL...but I love it just the same!
Sounds like "THE BASTARD" has laid it's cold, cruel hands on you and, therefore, deserves a stern beating. If you can't shove him off...I will beat him off. Oh shit...wait a second...that doesn't sound right at all.
ReplyDeleteThe same malady has affected me as well. (Yes indeed, where the hell have i been?!)
As the only heavily published writer I know once told me, we all as writers cant force the shit out. We can persist in finishing a particular piece that has been started already, but as far as new material...well, it just has to kind of bubble up out of us. Just like the mighty Stephanie said, if we wait something will surely come about that will draw pen to lovely paper (or hands to the dreaded keyboard)almost uncontrolably. I've had 2 entire months where I thought I may have been lobotomized in my damn sleep and couldn't even come up with a clever sentence--only to be shattered by what turned out to be pretty much the most productive month ever. Patience grass hopper...people like us just cant control the heavy urge to write coming back soon enough.
And what do you mean blogging doesn't pay well? Didn't you get the $10,000 advance on genius writing that our non-existent superiors sent you? I got mine, but unfortunately they sent $10,000 in baked good...ya know cookies, pies, ect. I guess I didn't specify that I needed cash...shucks.