*Stands up and clears throat* Hello, my name is Jacqui and I'm a Procrastinator. Right now I should be starting a new writing project. I have no excuse. My son is at school and my toddler is asleep. But no, I email, I Facebook and I surf. I want to write and yet I don't. Explain it to me.
Now that I'm a mother of two and a part-time employee, I have less time than I used to for writing. I look back on my lazy single life and curse my procrastinating ways. Back then I waited for the muse to strike, for inspiration to come. And when it didn't, I read or watched telly or went out. I had all the time in the world and what did I do? I wasted it!
I know that time is precious now. I grab all the tiny bits of time for writing that I can and clutch them to my chest like a possessive two year old. Mine, mine, I whisper. Most of the time I put my head down and write and I have to say that recently I've done more than I have in a long time. And yet...and yet...I fight that demon, Procrastination. And it's a daily battle. Anything seems better than writing and yet all I want to do it write. Steve Pressfield in his book "The War of Art" calls this procrastination 'resistence'. As writers (and creators of all shapes and sizes), it's our job to overcome this resistence. To break through it and do what we are driven to do. Pressfield has many tips for overcoming resistence and they are all based on his advice to stop behaving like an amateur and become a professional. Turn pro and treat your creative endeavour like a vocation. Be dedicated.
Right, I'm off to be a writing pro. If you see me on Facebook, tell me to get the hell off it and write.
The Known World
1 year ago
