Thursday, June 6, 2013

Out of Habit

The past month has shown me just how true the analogy of writing and the gym is - skipping a day writing makes it that much easier to skip the next day as well.

Ever since finishing Schism, I've taken a break so my mind can recover from the task of writing a fairly sizeable novel in barely four months.  I've spent more time with my family, caught up on reading, and generally pursued other interests.  However, that doesn't mean the creative process has shut off completely, and I have several ideas swimming through my head.

After publishing a few of my works, I plan to put out an anthology of short stories.  Several stories are already done, including a few that have gotten me some recognition, but there needs to be more so that it'll be worth buying for the average reader.  My plan is to write seven or so short stories prior to August, which is when I plan to start my next novel.
(Short stories provide a great deal of variety)
However, having taken a break, I find it difficult to get revved back up.  Most of the short stories will be on the order of 4,000 words or so, but there are a few that I plan to be 2,000.  Even a 4,000 word story is easily doable in a day(just under two hours if I'm in the zone), but starting is proving problematic.  I initially wrote off my laziness as the challenging month I'm in the middle of, but I've had time...time that I've really just spent fucking off.  Just like with Schism, I need to sit my ass in front of a computer screen and start.  I can always find an excuse not to write, but it's the same litany of excuses I use to not go to the gym.

Writers write - it's what we do.  Yet the longer we write, the easier it becomes to keep not writing, as I've discovered time and time again.  Even though it's not January, it's time to make that resolution again and get back in the habit.

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