To begin,
Hooray for a return to normalcy (thank you Warren G Harding for the popularization of the word) in my nursing schedule.
My two previous blogs concerned time management and manuscript length. A third piece of the puzzle is the open door.
What things do we need when we write?
I am a lover of all things coffee. I have my Keurig. I have my Cuisinart. I have a selection of coffees to suit my moods. Without my coffee, the doorway to the possible is difficult to open. I also have an array of simple toys that free my mind ("Ideas From the Toy Box" July 18th, 2016). Today is a marbles and snow globe day.
I have note cards. I have scratch paper and journals. I have prints on the wall of my office (September Morn by Paul Chabas among my favorites) that allow for "what-if". I have music. Some days it's Disturbed. Some days it's The Moody Blues. Today it's light jazz.
For every writer, there is something necessary. A key to open the door.
I don't always write in my office, but I always have some of my necessary things: a pen I like, a notebook, some physical thing - a rock or twig sometimes does well - that takes me past the threshold. Every writer has some thing(s) that allows them freedom of expression. Identifying those things isn't always easy. They are born in the subconscious. In the "Why do I feel better with this is nearby?" moments.
We are all pampered in one way or another. For some, the mundane is a creature comfort. Others require an emotion, whether wrapped in the guise of sadness, or exhilaration, or other torments and joys we bring with us, there is always something that provides the proper mood.
Writing can often be a lonely thing. But perhaps that is a key that opens the door.
To succeed as part-time writers, we have to make the most of the time we have. We have to be be flexible and let our stories end where they will, no matter the length. And we need to have those things that inspire us, that meet our unspoken needs, close at hand. Things that take us back to that place of love, or horror, or loneliness.
This is not necessarily the case for nonfiction writers. They keep close at hand the things that help them be comfortable and efficient. But if a writer is creating lives and worlds, they are more often lost in the work.
Keep a bag of goodies nearby. I have something in every room of my house that can inspire me to write. I have an old wooden box, filled with evocative things, that travels with me. I keep my favorite snacks on hand. I have my coffee.
There will never be enough free time. You will always have lofty goals, but can allow your stories to end as they should, no matter the length. Now, find what it is that helps you write; or perhaps better said, allow those things to find you.
In February, I will, once again, add Click Here selections at the end of my weekly blogs. Many of the previous Click Here postings have been removed, but are still available. Simply click the site map at the top right of the page and select Contact. Make sure you include the date of the selected excerpt. Click RwriterN at the top of the page to access the home page.
I hope you've enjoyed, and, as always, keep writing.
RwriterN: the Writer inside.
We are the ones who open the door. We are the ones who close the door.