I came home, exhausted and in pain and said to my DH (Darling Husband-and he really is...darling, that is) - "I'm going to have to let some of my cleaning clients go. I know we need the money, but I was working away this morning and realizing I feel like I did when I worked in an office. I'm so busy getting there and working away that all creativity has been leached out of me. I can't even begin to develop story lines or round out my characters...because I'm completely in work mode! Something has got to give!"
Add to that the pressure my "life coach" is applying...
"How you doing on writing these days?" he asked the other day. "You know, NaNoWriMo is coming up," he pauses, "are you going to participate this year?"
I want to cry, hide under a rock, maybe even heave the rock in his direction...
I went to Red Room, a site that offers prizes for NaNoWriMo winners and had to copy and paste the following:
THE RED ROOM PHILOSOPHY
• Taking a writing class … is not writing.
• Therapy … is not writing.
• Attending interesting lectures about writing … is not writing.
• Reading books about writing or anything else … is not writing.
• Completing writing "exercises" … is not writing.
• Attending a peer critique writing group … is not writing.
• Feeling guilty all week for not writing … is not writing.
• Participating in NaNoWriMo … is you actually writing.
Save the seminar on publishing for after you have a finished, polished manuscript. Save the group therapy for another night of the week. Recognize that you are doing these other activities instead of completing a manuscript. If you want to leave a legacy of more than just having attended classes or reading the New York Review of Books with keen interest, you need to participate in NaNoWriMo.
If you truly do not feel ready to write what you want to write without more research and personal growth … you’re mistaken. The majority of the most brilliant writers in history had absolutely no training, useful industry information, or self-awareness. Stop talking and start writing.
And that's it, man. I mean, really, that is it. All bullshit aside. If you want to be a writer, then you have to do one thing, WRITE. That's it. The rest will follow.
And that is true about all things in life. If you want it, really, really, REALLY want it...
Then go out and get it.
Don't wait for someone else's blessing, for the clouds to part and the sun to shine down. Don't wait for 'that perfect moment' that never comes when all the stars align and a heavenly chorus begins to sing.
We make our own luck.
We make our own future.
Best get started.
