In my head Tom Petty is the one singing the following lyrics:
Procrastination
Not gettin' it done
Procrastination
I'm feelin' real dumb
Procrastination
The time went no-where
Procrastination
The words just aren't there
Here in the northern hemisphere school is nearly finished until next autumn. I gave myself this school year to make some sort of headway with a writing career. Anything to indicate hope would have let me give myself permission to follow writing full time. A contest final, a 'good' rejection rather than a dreaded 'form' R, a request for a partial, a sale!
What have I achieved? That one lovely judge who gave me all but full marks aside, very little. Let me see, four to eight pages a day by the number of school days is, umm, too hard to figure out, but significantly more than I actually wrote.
I have excuses. But that's exactly what they are, not true reasons. What have I spent my time doing?
Yep. That's right.
Procrastinating.
Why? It's too easy to do other stuff. And of course the pop psychologists have got it right. What if I tried my hardest, did my best, poured my heart and soul into as much writing as I should have got done this year and didn't get anywhere? What if I failed?
what if I sent off my Q and S/3 chapters and got back that fantasy 'R' that I'm sure lurks in the back of all writers' minds? You know the one. It goes something like:
Dear Ms Davis,
After reading your submission and getting back from the emergency room (who knew ribs really could crack from laughing?) I would like to recommend that you take up something for which you are more suited. Higher mathematics or astrophysics perhaps.
Should you persist in your attempts at writing please be advised that all personnel at this office have been given your name and a 10 foot pole fitted with a flame thrower for dealing with any manuscripts you send our way.
Good luck with your new career,
Edwina Editor
I told myself to get over it. I have 9 and a half days left to write and I'm sure I can eke out an hour here and there during the summer.
This morning I outlined the paranormal series, gave working title a real title, outlined the rest of working title and part of its' series. And now I've written this blog. With any luck I might even get around to real writing today.
Any advice?
How do you keep the procrastinations away?
H! :)
H Maree Davis
