Deadlines
As I await word on my manuscript, I am preparing myself for the life of a professional writer. One of the luxuries of writing my first novel was that there were no stakes. I got lost in my characters, their stories, and their drama and I wasn't concerned about much else. It wasn't until I work-shopped my first piece and I got positive feedback that I realized other people may like it too. Tapping into that joy I felt, the fun it seemed to bring others, and the pure happiness that writing gave me helped me finally admit I wanted to pursue writing as a profession.
But let's face it, the joy of writing for yourself is quite different from writing for business. If When I am fortunate enough to go into contract with a publisher, I am going to be expected to write - with editors, suppliers, and an audience - all waiting for my product... under deadline.
My hippie brain is the leader of deadline opposition. What can be more damaging to creativity than the pressure of a looming deadline? Art takes time. Examining butterfly wings. Watching sunsets. Peering at people through a clean section of a foggy window pane. You know, allowing time to see your creepy artist process through. However, the other part of my brain - that stiff 9-5er that goes to work everyday, realizes that deadlines are discipline. They are reigning it all in and holding yourself accountable. They are proof that you want to be taken seriously. Proof that you can control your gift. That your muse isn't just running around showing up when and where she feels like it ripping up your pages and making you stare at a blank screen.
That is the discipline I am practicing with the short story I am publishing on October 31. I want to prove to myself that I am ready. Ready for the deadlines, the vulnerability and to be held accountable. It's one thing to believe you can be something, it's quite another to prove that you can be. I mean it's possible right? You wouldn't have writers like Stephen King or James Patterson or John Grisham producing quality book after book if writers weren't able to make inspiration a part of their profession. But who knows - maybe they miss deadlines all the time.
Love and Light,
Faye
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My hippie brain is the leader of deadline opposition. What can be more damaging to creativity than the pressure of a looming deadline? Art takes time. Examining butterfly wings. Watching sunsets. Peering at people through a clean section of a foggy window pane. You know, allowing time to see your creepy artist process through. However, the other part of my brain - that stiff 9-5er that goes to work everyday, realizes that deadlines are discipline. They are reigning it all in and holding yourself accountable. They are proof that you want to be taken seriously. Proof that you can control your gift. That your muse isn't just running around showing up when and where she feels like it ripping up your pages and making you stare at a blank screen.
That is the discipline I am practicing with the short story I am publishing on October 31. I want to prove to myself that I am ready. Ready for the deadlines, the vulnerability and to be held accountable. It's one thing to believe you can be something, it's quite another to prove that you can be. I mean it's possible right? You wouldn't have writers like Stephen King or James Patterson or John Grisham producing quality book after book if writers weren't able to make inspiration a part of their profession. But who knows - maybe they miss deadlines all the time.
Love and Light,
Faye
Ummm... I do! I miss them all the time. Well, not all the time. And that gft of JCVD, hilarious.
ReplyDeleteYou've got this! Trust the process and your instincts. And here's to your manuscript!
ReplyDelete