Getting Back Into The Routine

I thought last week--a three day school week--was hard; getting up at 5:45, making breakfast and lunch and getting my son to school. This week was worse. I do like being up early, because I have more time in the day to get everything done. It's the getting out of bed part that I hate, especially after a long summer of sleeping in. But what's even worse, my writing for the week did not go as planned.

Getting back into the routine was the easy part. Getting the muse to cooperate was the hard part. I had a very good day on Monday reviewing what I'd already written over the summer and fine-tuning the chapters. It all went south on Tuesday. Starting the next chapter was rough. My muse had deserted me. Where it went, I don't know. But I stubbornly kept at it all that day and Wednesday, and with the help of Stacey, my critique partner, I managed to make it all come together on Thursday. And now, late Friday afternoon, I'm actually looking forward to writing on Monday.

You can do the same in your writing, if you hit a stumbling block. Take a few deep breaths, remember you're coming off a long, hot summer and cut yourself some slack. Take it slow, outline a few ideas and your muse will kick in. I found that several cups of caffine will help with this. Plus listening to my critique partner and cutting the garbage from my work that needed cutting. So it is with great appreciation and gratitude that I thank Stacey for jump-starting my muse and pointing out where I ventured off course. If not for her, I'd still be pounding out the same words on the keyboard and wallowing in the anxiety I experience when I can't get a scene right.

Now, I'm going to put my feet up and enjoy the weekend. Yeah, right. There's yard work, taking down the pool, helping my son with his homework... The list goes on and on and on, but Monday will be here soon and then I can get back to my characters and their world.