The real writing battle is not just about handling life on a normal day, but also when life is shitty. Being ignored by service staff twice in different places within half an hour and a day later mustering the energy to maintain complex work relationships; do not form any part of my master writing plan! Collectively these incidents had a rankling effect at the start of the week and did not inspire creativity. Ironically though, I wanted to write straightway, documenting my frustration releases it’s hold and eases the negative effect on the mind. However, the preferred response to these niggling vibes would be the inspiration to get on with the actual writing project I want to present for publication. The June deadline is not that far away and although I have started, progress is slow. Instead, I focus on this weekend when I will have guests to stay and a party to attend; and I wonder if I will still have time to indulge what has become a weekly ritual. Will it seem rude, or is this now part of the process? In this instance, my first real test on how to push through with my writing along with everything else; I took myself off to write; no explanation required. It was as if the time just became available; in reality, I made a decision and got on with it, no fuss, no bother, result!
Slowly and consciously I am incorporating the space I need to write into weekend life at least, despite other things competing for my time. I heard a quote earlier this week that struck a chord “The key to happiness is insensitivity” – Tennessee Williams I believe. I think it’s a great quote because in my experience it’s true. The best writing experiences I had, were not when things were going well and although I was not actively being insensitive I did shut myself away. I was in a new city, draughty shared accommodation with a temporary full-time job involving Maths, not my favourite subject. Still, I had to complete the creative portfolio for my Master’s Degree, again the deadline was looming (I think this will be a recurring theme) with six weeks to go I had to make every second count. I allocated one whole day of pure writing a week for the outlines and the rest of the time I ate, slept and wrote the dialogue while excluding everything else from my life. It was hard, but great I’ve never been so focused in my life; not before nor since. If that is the definition of my success then I will need to evoke this method again, sometime soon. But for now, I, have to go be the hostess with the mostest and make that long distance call.
