The Struggle to Write

So, it must be part and parcel of what I'm going through with respect to the WIP - even coming up with an idea and writing a blog post is a struggle for me these days.

I don't want to give up on my commitment of writing two blog posts a week because once that happens it's a slippery slope to writing nothing at all. Which will make it all the harder to get back into the swing of things once I finally get the ideas back or the urge or whatever it is that propels us to write. I've noticed a few writers have mentioned their own struggles either with their works in progress or the blog or just keeping up with all of the various communities we both love to be a part of yet take an inordinate amount of time to maintain the proper involvement.

Maybe it's because it is November and NaNoWriMo is going on. The energy to commit to drafting an entire novel in one month is huge and I'm in awe of those who can do it. But a lot of writers, me included, did not put that pressure on ourselves. So what's up with this difficulty in finding words? November is a particularly hellish month for me personally with many family and work commitments that make it very hard to carve out some writing time. But I wonder if it is that or am I going forward slowly because I just finished the revision of my last book (which, hopefully, will find a publishing home as well)after finishing the edits of Illegally Blonde after finishing a book that my agent did not like after finishing a book that she did like but did not sell and that needs another revision. In the last two years I figure I've written over 500,000 words - whether new or revised. That's a lot of writing.

So, while I know marathon runners can do two or three (or however many) runs in one year, they also need to take breaks or do shorter, less intense races because their bodies can take only so much. But what they always do - always - is run almost every day. They have to because they love it and because it's good for them in the long run (ha! pun). Once it's time for that big race they are prepared. Their muscles are not rusty.

Writing is no different. I may not be doing the Boston Marathon right now, but I'm still forcing myself to go for a shorter run through the neighbourhood - it may not be as intense but it keeps things loose. So I'm ready for the big race.