that middle place
I finished a draft - a pile of 40,000 words - and now I'm...well, what am I doing? I'm supposed to be researching the history and culture of the time period I'm writing about, taking copious notes, thinking smart thoughts about structure and plotting and blah blah blah. Instead I'm watching "Let the Right One In" on Netflix (again) and reading Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics. And no, there are no vampires in my book, so I really can't pass this off as research.
I've been blogging constantly about focus - how I need to tap into it in order to create a book out of this rough draft. My day job reached a pitch of craziness these last couple weeks, leaving little time for browsing around the library on a research mission. I find myself floating in that space past my book, waving to it from afar. There is something more I should be doing, to inspire and prepare myself for the revision to come. And I feel like I'm just not doing it. Maybe I just need to carefully select some books to read, take a deep breath, and keep my eyes wide open. And maybe...not stress so much? I've never tried this approach. It does not come naturally.
I've been blogging constantly about focus - how I need to tap into it in order to create a book out of this rough draft. My day job reached a pitch of craziness these last couple weeks, leaving little time for browsing around the library on a research mission. I find myself floating in that space past my book, waving to it from afar. There is something more I should be doing, to inspire and prepare myself for the revision to come. And I feel like I'm just not doing it. Maybe I just need to carefully select some books to read, take a deep breath, and keep my eyes wide open. And maybe...not stress so much? I've never tried this approach. It does not come naturally.
It sounds like you need to recharge a little :D
ReplyDeleteIn that case, the low stress approach is wise.