Writing, thy name is frustration

Have you ever had so many writing projects going at one time that you have felt overwhelmed…even when normally you can handle many projects at once? Oh but wait, it doesn’t end there, add to those numerous writing projects your mundane life, and if you are a student of anything, even if it is informal training…oh boy. How do we writers survive?

Do we scream, rant, and rave with frustration? Well of course we do…we are human, and according to the stereotypes, we are supposed to be eccentric, so that would fit perfect in our abnormal lives, right?

I don’t know about you, but after I have finished screaming, ranting and raving, I sit with my computer and I write anyway. What else can you do with the muse that constantly beats at us…even when we are sleeping?

The point is writing is frustrating. There is no other word to describe it. Writing can make a seemingly normal person go stark raving mad. It can make a normally outgoing person reclusive. It can make a person who can sleep soundly roam the nights (and days) with little or no sleep.

When a story grips us, we normally don’t care how we look until you have written the last word, catch a glimpse of yourself in a mirror or window and see what a total mess you have become and then even you run in terror.

Okay…maybe that is a slight exaggeration, but you get the message.

Writing is a mistress. It is your lover. Just like any lover, if you neglect it, the writing will be vicious and demand attention. This brings us back to the original point of this. When your lover decides he (or she) needs more attention, that is when you find yourself snowed under with projects…and even at that, you look for more projects, because you just can’t resist the temptation of putting a word or two (preferably a lot more) to a blank piece of paper. You find yourself making a story with anything that you can. (Raise your hand if you have tried writing a story, or poem, when filling out a form!)

My advice to you, which even I have a hard time following…learn to say “no” to your lover. Know when your time is filled to capacity, or semi-capacity, and put the non-important tasks to the side. Yes, writing is a demanding lover, but it is all right to tell your lover “no” occasionally and your lover will still love you.

PS…any of you ever imagine seeing a person standing behind you staring at your computer or paper, making sure you write enough words…and in their hand is a looooooooong whip? ;-)