”I think the only advice I’ve ever said to someone who said thy were finishing… It’s like it doesn’t exist. It’s not a script until it’s finished. You’re not a writer, actually. Let’s be blunt. You’re not until you’ve written. And you can be, anyone can be. But if it’s all in your head, then no, you’re not a writer. And if it’s only two pages, shut up. Stop wasting time, finish it. Cause no one is going to thank you for those two pages, no one is going to be impressed by those two pages, no one’s going to buy those two pages, no one’s going to love those two pages. It’s just a waste of time. You’re not a writer until you’ve got a script, or a novel, or whatever it is you want to do. Then you can start the hard work. but up until them, it’s just bullshit, so get on with it.” ~ Russell T. Davies
In all of this time, in all of these years, the only thing that remains the same is change. Even with planning and plotting out how I think things will be, they turn out not to be so. I can’t truly say that it’s a bad thing because all roads lead to here.
And in looking at where I am and where I’ve been, what I’m doing and what I’ve done, I can not complain. I am a believer in things aligning the way that they’re supposed. And yes, that goes for me. When opportunities present themselves, I am astute and in tune enough to know when it’s my time to strike. There’s certainly a difference between things being handed to you and things being presented to you and you having to make the effort. I think life tends to be much more the latter than the former and honestly, I prefer that way.
The sense of accomplishment that comes with it is also a part of the prize.
Too stressed to write this week, but that all changes now.
I have been so caught up with life, I found that I have already broken the promise that I made to myself:
Write EVERY day.
Looking at the backlog of topics that I want to write about, I realize that I’ve spent more time researching my topics than actually writing. And that is just not… a completely bad thing.
Threw you off for a minute there, didn’t I?
The mantra from all writers is to just write. Sit down and write. When you think you have no ideas, when you feel that there’s nothing left in you to give, you sit down and write. When your brain and your soul and your heart are all feeling as empty as your last biro cartridge, you still write. (And I don’t want to discuss exactly how old your pen has to be if it has a cartridge in it.)
But I do have to say, and not just to live up to my mother’s nickname for me of ‘Mary Contrary,’ that sometimes it’s not the right time to write.
What?
Yes, I have said it. Sometimes it just is not the time to write. Sometimes you need to give your brain a rest, or you need to continue looking up the birthdate of your favorite bass player from Duran Duran (June 20, 1960), or you need to keep interacting on Twitter because something interesting is going on. Being a writer entails a lot of other factors besides writing. Researching, communicating, interacting listening, thinking… I find those actions to be as necessary for me and an integral part of my writing.
Having said that, the time for researching, communicating, interacting, listening and thinking has come to an end. The time has come to write. And writing is what I shall do.
It wasn’t until I moved to Michigan from California that I realized how gorgeous Northern Michigan was.
Boyne, MI – September 2011.
Canon Rebel EOS Xsi
Opteka .35x HD² Wide Angle Fisheye Lens
A few weeks back, I received an email from my webhost company, informing me that there was a security breach with three of my blogs. For security’s sake, they deleted a number of files – rendering all three blogs inaccessible. In essence, I lost all three blogs.
Normally, this would have devastated me. But in this particular instance, it felt like blessing.
I had been struggling with how I was going to market myself. What exactly did I want to blog about? What was important enough for me to say that I wanted to share with the world?
What is my focus?
And it all comes back to just one word – writing.
I want to travel, but I want to write about my travels. I want to research different cultures – for a book. I love British comedians and I’ve ben collecting data – so I can write about their brand of humor.
Everything makes its way back to writing, so that shall remain my focus.
The Great Blog Deletion of 2012 was truly what I needed so I could pinpoint where my heart and my passion lies.
It’s just forward from this point on.
Madness
1 : the quality or state of being mad: as
a : rage
b : insanity
c : extreme folly
d : ecstasy, enthusiasm
My life has always revolved around communication. I am never seen without a notebook because there is always something to write about, always something that needs to be captured in that moment. Writing is who I am, it’s what I am about, it’s what I feel, it’s what I need to do, it’s what makes me feel alive, it’s what matters to me when all else has passed me by, it is the only thing that I know, without a doubt, that I am incapable of doing wrong.
