So Close, Yet So Far

Last night as I was dozing off to sleep I got a story idea.  I love it when inspiration strikes.  I started jotting down notes and ideas for it, but I'm so excited to actually start on it.  It's always exciting to start a new writing project.  It's fresh.  New characters, new plot.  All the details to figure out of this new world.  It always excites me to start a story.

Which makes me wonder why I'm having such a hard time ending the current story I'm working on.  I want to finish it.  I love the story.  Is it that I don't want it to end?  Maybe I just can't find an ending that fits?  Maybe I've lost interest in the direction it's gone? If I've lost interest than more than likely the readers would too.  Except I don't know if that's the case and I'm just frustrated because every line I try to right is like ripping off my fingernails.  It makes me want to scream.  So close yet so far.

So, here's what I've decided.  This new project, while I'll still write down ideas, and characters, and all the fun stuff like that, I'm not going to let it over shadow the project I'm currently working on.  Meaning, I'm not going to actually writing the story, until I've completed this one. 

Now that doesn't mean I'm not going to probably jot down short stories and things like that, but this new story idea wouldn't be a short story.   I really want to finish the story I'm working on though and then while I'm going back to edit it, I can start the new project.

No Excuses! Write!

I've neglected posting for the last few days. Which no excuses will suffice.  Yes, I've been busy and stressed, but I've still found time to write.  Why not time to post then?  I need to make sure I keep this on my regularly scheduled programming each day.  Even if I don't have much to write. I need to get through the bad to get to the good.  Even if it's a long, arduous journey filled with stress and pain in the ass characters who never want to do as their told.  Then again I suppose if they that they wouldn't be interesting in the least.

Right now I'm sitting in the garage having a garage sale.  I could try and actually write part of my story or work on a short story, but Saturday's is one of the busiest days for this sort of thing and even now I'm sitting here stopping every other sentence to go and help a passerby who has a question on an item.  Still, at least I'm being productive by sitting down and working on this blog.

I've managed to write some, not much, but I keep forcing the words out.  I know eventually it'll start to flow again, but they seem stubborn right now.  I think it's mainly because I'm stressed.  Stress is a killer of muses.  I just refuse to let it get me down anymore than it already has.  Even when I can't focus on a story I sit down and write in a journal.  Organize my thoughts of just vent.  Whatever works at the time.

For right now, while I'm back and forth, I'm going to catch up on all the blog posts I missed!

It's Just Another Manic Monday....

So, I'm more than likely going to be a Monday through Friday blogger.  The weekends seem to take my brain on joy ride that I have no control over.  Meaning that if I did manage to post on Saturday and or Sunday it would be complete gibberish.  I know most of posts now are mostly gibberish, so I really don't want to add to it.

Mondays are my least favorite days.  I've never liked Mondays.  I will probably never like Mondays.  Mondays are the bane of my existence and should be wiped from the calendar.  Too much?  I tend to go a little overboard sometimes.

Anyways, so after taking care of things around the house I sit down and have managed to break my writers block. 

I wrote a paragraph.

Now to be fair, I'm not sure if it would have continued flowing or not, because, and this never fails, as soon as I sat down to write, something happens.  For instance.  We have a massive storm coming in.  Rain storm. I'm a Florida girl.  Never seen snow.  It's very dark outside, the wind is howling like crazy and thunder is rumbling in the sky.  I live on seven acres of land and I have three dogs.  They have a doggy door and go in and out as they please.  So, when we have crazy storms I have to round up the posse and bring them inside, closing off the doggy door.  Yes, they will run outside in thunder storms.  It makes them all frisky and suddenly they've forgotten how to come when you call them.  Safer just to get them in before the downpour begins.

See, now I've left my room and I'm visible to the rest of the household which means they have now thought of a hundred and one things they want me to do.  Now this could be anything from having a conversation with them to taking out the trash or finding something that's gone amiss.  Eventually I find a way to slink back to my room, but then the muse is gone.  Apparently my allotted time was up and she has moved on to her next client for the day.

So, here's the plan.  I'm going to work out.  I'm going to cook dinner.  I'm going to do a bit of family time.  Then I'm going to sit down in front of my computer and print out a sign that says 'Disturb At Your Own Risk'.  If someone dares to come in here and start bugging me I may very well soak all their underwear and stick it in the freezer.  That's even being generous.

So how do you get people to stop bugging you when you're trying to write?

Friday Night Write's...Or Not

I usually do my posts as soon as I wake up, but there was too much commotion today.  The hubby hasn't been feeling well so he was mopey.  Don't get me wrong, he's absolutely adorable when he's mopey, but it's very distracting and makes it hard to get anything on or off the computer done.  Of course then the morning was gone and I had to get on task with everything else I had to do today.

After shopping, cooking, cleaning, running errands, picking a friends dog that we're watching tonight, and hair dying fun (from a box, as I am too pour to go to a salon)  I finally get a moment at my computer.  The hubby is raiding on WoW, the dogs have been fed, everyone's good to go. 

So why am I not writing?

It's only 7:45 pm and everyone is still awake.  My mom wants to have a drink with me tonight and the Holy Grail of TV is on tonight.  Supernatural.  Friday nights and weekends seem to be the hardest times for me to write.  There's always something going on.  There's always another errand or another chore that wasn't gotten to during the week, plus family togetherness time.  Plus, ya know, sometimes you just want to take a break because it's the weekend and have fun.

I managed to finish another short story yesterday, but still no luck on the actual manuscript.  I wonder if my muse for that is blatantly ignoring me.  It sure as hell seems like it.

Now don't get me wrong.  All of the above are simply excuses.  One reason or another that I have written today.  I could be staring at my manuscript right now trying to pull out that next sentence, dragging it by the ankles kicking and screaming.  I could be starting another short story or editing one of the completed works.  The truth is right now, I just don't have the energy to think that much.

Writing every day is a good thing, but I feel like if I push it too much I'll burn myself out.  No it won't be permanently, but whether it be for a day or a week, I'll look at a blank page in Word or stare at my journal as though it's sprouted horns.  I really don't want that to happen. 

So, tonight I'm taking a break.  That doesn't mean that later in the night when I have a nice buzz going on, and I'm relaxed that I won't open word or pull out my journal.  It could very well happen.  Just at this moment particular moment I've decided that I'm not going to stress over it.  Besides, sometimes taking a break and relaxing will help the ideas flow better.

Giving My Manuscript The Evil Eye

My dad is currently on a Greyhound Bus on his way to Georgia.  He got a job driving semi trucks again.  See that pretty picture up there.  Yeah, I don't live in Ocala.  I live about an hour away from it.  In other words, I live in the boonies.  While I actually enjoy the peace out here, there isn't much to do and to get anywhere (with the exception of Walmart) you have an extremely long drive.

Honestly, the driving part doesn't bother me.  Except for the fact that I was driving a rickety car that sounds more like an airplane that an automobile, shakes when you hit about 50pmh and skips when you break.  Not to mention you have to hold the the turning signal down or it just pops back up before you even turn.  That's just skimming the surface of what's wrong with this car.  In other words:  It scares the hell out of me to drive it.

Luckily dad drove to the station.  Which, I was surprised to find out wasn't just a bus station, but also an Amtrak Station.  The front of the platform is for the bus passengers, the back for the train passengers.

See!  Amtrak!  I was like...uh okay then.  So after the heartfelt goodbyes we got out of the cold wind and into the warm car and headed home.  The car managed to hold together, all in all a good start to my day.

The plan after that was to come home and work more on my manuscript.  I'm at 52,234 words.  Mind you this is just the first draft.  I haven't done any revisions.  My goal is to get it finished.  If I go back and do revisions while writing, it'll never get done.  I've tried that method.  I wanted to shoot myself.  Multiple times.

I'm at the end!  There's not much more to write!  Yet I stared at the damn thing for over an hour and couldn't type one word.  This has been going on every day for a week.  Thus I have started giving my manuscript the evil eye and threatening  my muses with a never ending stream of torture unless they comply and let me finish it! 

Since both my manuscript and my muses seeming to be laughing at that, I don't think my threats are working.  So, in light of that I'm going to attempt to work on a separate project for a few hours.  Maybe once the sun sets completely the moon will throw creative beams my way.  In the mean time, I'm going to look away before my brain explodes.