After the blog tour–a three day romp through tall mountaintops and deep valleys, I am convinced of one thing: at the end of the sometimes exhausting stuff writers must do, we write. Today I’m facing down my novel-in-progress. Every single time I jump in the pool, I get caught up in the characters and the story. Yet just before I open the work to begin, I argue with myself. Water’s too cold, too warm, too chlorinated, too dirty. I stand on the edge of my own story and find ways to procrastinate. “I’ll get in a toe at a time,” I’ll reason. “Get used to it bit by bit.” Or, “If I take it slow I’ll do a better job.” What nonsense. Do I believe in my story? Do I care what happens to the charcters I made up? I’d better care or else no one else will. And those who write slowly may never finish.
I’m shocked into the realization that I’ve been writing as if I had all the time in the world. I’ve worked on the book when I “felt like it.” When I didn’t feel like it, my story sat in eight feet of water, near the drain, growing algae. I hold my nose, plug my ears and jump into the deep end of the story.
Writing Tip For Today: Every time you sit down to write, just jump in the pool, shoes and all. Get carried away by the waves of emotions your characters go through. Dive into the story even if it’s a kind of belly flop you’ll fix later. Don’t allow yourself to write when you feel like it or when you are inspired or when everyone is gone and you can think. Throw a wet blanket on those lame excuses. Get at it. Write at top speed-o. Even if you are at the stage of life, like I am, where you don’t buy a bathing suit unless it has a skirt. You do not have all the time in the world. Write your destiny, and write it right now. The water’s fine, come on in!