Writing During The Pandemic

When we first went into lockdown, the sudden stretches of spare time were viewed as a bonus. “I’ll catch up on my reading/try a new hobby/bake!” everyone declared. As for the artistically minded, we exclaimed, “Now I can create without the pesky distractions of normal life! This is great!”

I bought into this myth, treating it as the writing holiday I’d always wanted to go on. I acquired several new notebooks and indulged my stationery addiction. I’d started my new story the week before lockdown and confidently predicted it’d be finished within months. All I had to do was write it. Piece of cake.

Only ... not.

We’re nearly a year into the pandemic. I junked my comic novel four months down the line when I realised I didn’t know where these characters were going and didn’t particularly care. I shrugged and embarked upon a new project. This too fizzled out within a matter of months. Call me a glass half full person, but you can’t write a dystopia when a pandemic is raging and the American President is inciting a coup. It makes your imaginings seem decidedly tame.

I don’t know how anybody else works, but my writing comes from a happy place. My characters might endure trials and tribulations, but all the while I’m tucked up in a blanket with a cup of coffee, enjoying my favourite pastime. If you’re tired, fretful and constantly on the alert, you can’t produce your best work - or indeed any work. It’s like NaNoWriMo, only you’re dodging a deadly virus instead of beardy braggadocio.

It makes you feel like a fake, as well as a whinger. There’s this belief you’re not a writer unless you’re regularly committing words to paper - anyone who doesn’t is an idler, a dilettante. And who cares about your writer’s block when the world’s on fire? Get a sense of perspective!

Bearing this in mind, I’ve reached a decision. Yes, I’m finding it tough. Yes, there might be a delay publishing my next book. But I’m not going to beat myself up over it. It’s better to take my time and write a good novel than dash off a mediocre one. I’ll look after myself and see what happens.