Bright Lights, Late Nights

TeroVesalainen via Pixabay

Ever wonder what happens to writers who neglect their projects?

Sometimes, at least in my experience, their projects plan a sneak attack.

As the end of the semester closes in, it's hard to find time to write. All of my writing projects are sloshing around in a frenzied, chaotic fashion in the back of my mind, banging into each other and, I sometimes believe, conspiring against me. Insulted that they've been set aside (despite deadlines) while I pursue such mundane tasks as grading papers and planning classes, they plot to reclaim their spot at the front of the line.

Last night, I went to bed early (for me) and slept well for about an hour and a half. Awakened by a dream that I was grading papers wrong, I struggled to go back to sleep. I tried all of the usual tricks, but with little success. I considered playing a mindless game on my iPad, but knew that would wake my husband (who was not having any trouble sleeping). I thought about going downstairs to read, but didn't really want to turn on a light.

So I began turning a writing project over in my head.

Initially, it seemed counterproductive, as I first pulled out the notepad and pencil I keep in the nightstand and then kept returning to it as new ideas, in no particular order or relevance, kept popping into my head. Eventually, out of ideas, I fell asleep.

When I looked at the scribbles this morning, I knew I had to make time today to jot them down before I could no longer make sense of notes I'd written in pencil in the dark in the middle of the night. As I transferred the ideas from scratch paper to notebook, new ideas popped up and I dug a little deeper. I still don't have a fully formed answer for this project, but I'm getting closer. Research conducted in the light of day to supplement random thoughts generated in the wee hours of the morning fosters a certain symbiotic relationship. I might have nothing, but I might have something...or the beginning of it anyway.

When sleep eludes most people, they count sheep or drink warm milk or get up and read until their eyes grow heavy. Writers do these things sometimes, too, but when projects prove problematic, sometimes we go a different way entirely.

Brainstorming 1 - Sleep 0. I'm okay with that.