One Thought Leads to Another

Geralt via Pixabay

My poor writing projects just can't catch a break. This week was fall break, and I had two days completely free of teaching responsibilities. (Well, there were those papers I had to grade, but the stack wasn't deep enough to prohibit writing). In addition, my critique group meets tonight, and last week was so busy that I actually missed a blog post completely for the first time...well, ever. So, you'd think I'd get up Monday morning raring to write, or maybe even get a head start over the weekend, right?

Well....

I kinda did. I went to see my dad over the early part of the weekend, and actually got some writing done there since he goes to bed earlier than I do. I finished the first draft of a piece that was due Sunday and started Monday's blog post. On Sunday, I finished the article.

But then on Monday morning, I woke up with course stuff running through my head -- mostly the  booklist that was due today.

And that was all it took. My half hour (an hour at the most!) at the computer tracking down articles morphed into a morning hopping from one article to another, posting things on my course pages, planning things for the week ahead....

In short? Not writing.

Part of me feels guilty, but most of me feels blessed. Yes, I know how ridiculous it sounds. But how many people do you know who have not just one, but two jobs they love so much they're all-consuming?

Granted, this is a double-edged sword. But it's also a pretty good life.

Tracking down those articles was fun and the fantastic luxury of hopping from one thing to another without having to stop to do something else was exhilarating. And even though my characters were off somewhere tapping their feet and drumming their nails wondering if I was ever going to show up, the work I was doing benefits them as much as it benefits me.

Writers who live full lives are better able to create rich lives for their characters. And writers who check the things off the lists created by their day jobs, not to mention their friends and families, are better able to give their characters the attention they so richly deserve when they (the writers) finally sit down to write.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it -- at least as long as this wild and crazy life works for me.