The Procrastination Curse
Hello Familiar's Tale Friends & Writing Enthusiasts!
I confess I am guilty of procrastinating. Actually doing the "writing your novel" process is a lot like being on a diet. You will start tomorrow, next Monday, when the stressful week is over, write my blog, after I watch this episode of Buffy, when Hell provides chilled beverages...the list goes on.
Writers are the greatest procrastinators of all time. It is strange because we love what we do. It is a voluntary occupation and even a vocation. Once in a college class, we watched a funny video about an author who was prepping to write his novel. First the pencils were not sharpened, he had the wrong paper, the paint was old and he repainted the office! A lot of effort to avoid what we love to do.
It is more frightening to realize the consequences. Franz Kafka stated that, "A non-writing writer is monster courting insanity." It is a bit grim, but the point is clear. We are at mental risk when we do not fulfill our purpose. An author has a lot of issues of course- fear and rejection, waiting for months to see if our work is accepted or rejected, publishing delays that border on insanity, and many other things that are draining on our mental health.
Sometimes it is lack of time or laziness, of course, but we must make an effort. I nudge (okay I nag) my husband Rick Hipps to finish his novel, a mere 4 chapters from completion. I am guilty as well. But I promise to do better. More to come.
Verna McKinnon
I confess I am guilty of procrastinating. Actually doing the "writing your novel" process is a lot like being on a diet. You will start tomorrow, next Monday, when the stressful week is over, write my blog, after I watch this episode of Buffy, when Hell provides chilled beverages...the list goes on.
Writers are the greatest procrastinators of all time. It is strange because we love what we do. It is a voluntary occupation and even a vocation. Once in a college class, we watched a funny video about an author who was prepping to write his novel. First the pencils were not sharpened, he had the wrong paper, the paint was old and he repainted the office! A lot of effort to avoid what we love to do.
It is more frightening to realize the consequences. Franz Kafka stated that, "A non-writing writer is monster courting insanity." It is a bit grim, but the point is clear. We are at mental risk when we do not fulfill our purpose. An author has a lot of issues of course- fear and rejection, waiting for months to see if our work is accepted or rejected, publishing delays that border on insanity, and many other things that are draining on our mental health.
Sometimes it is lack of time or laziness, of course, but we must make an effort. I nudge (okay I nag) my husband Rick Hipps to finish his novel, a mere 4 chapters from completion. I am guilty as well. But I promise to do better. More to come.
Verna McKinnon
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