And that doesn't necessarily mean it's anything soul-shattering or life-changing. I mean, sometimes it is, obviously, but sometimes things are just off enough that's it's a bit like a fun-house room with all the wonky mirrors. (Wonky...Wonka...I'm seeing a connection here...)
Some of that has been going on for me lately. It's been a little bit emotionally wonky, and my work is moving offices, and things (much bigger deal things) are going on in the lives of some of those I love most, and trips are being planned, and it's all great and good but just a little bit unsettling.
I've decided that sometimes that's just the way it goes, and that needs to be okay. It's been a true test of strength for my writing habits the past couple weeks, and I'm both happy to see that my habits have carried me through to making at least some progress, and I also have to acknowledge and accept that I have far from met my planned goals and daily schedule. Not even close.
And I'm sort of thinking that that's okay. Very temporarily, anyway. Even though lately I haven't been doing great at meeting my daily word count or submission goals, the past couple weeks have actually been quite a growth spurt and positive learning curve in a more personal way, and I've learned things about myself and my weaknesses and priorities and relationships. And I think that kind of thing tends to happen in the funky periods, where the slight craziness forces you to take a good look at yourself from new angles. And that in turn can, I think, help add a lot of depth and sagacity to your writing.
Now the next step in phases like this is to keep making progress, and keep working on getting out of the funk and back to normal status. There are a lot of ways to do this, and I've got a short trip coming up that I hope will be just the thing. The point is, while we need to keep working at things, we should also accept that things sometimes get weird, and let a funk be a funk. I think it's much more productive to take all the value you can from the funky times than spend it all beating yourself over the head about it.
So I'm going to do my best to keep working on productivity, and also just let the funky times roll.
Write on!
Sarah Allen
Sometimes we have to grow on a personal level before we can grow elsewhere. Just let the funk roll.
ReplyDeleteExactly. We do best when we take value and lessons from all the crazy periods in our lives.
DeleteI hope things get better for you soon. I don't mind a little change, but anything major and I become a whiny baby. I think you are doing quite well. Always do the best you can and don't worry about the rest. If your word count suffers now, it will pick up again, when you have things sorted out. Hang in there. You are doing great.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the kind words :) And yeah, its the little changes and quirks that really throw things off. But we just keep plugging along as best we can and hope for an upswing soon, right? Write on!
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ReplyDeleteI've been there especially as a teen. You could try what I used to do which is to write it out until you've made a breakthrough or are so bored with it you toss it. :-)
ReplyDeleteAnna from Shout with Emaginette
Haha :) That's basically what I'm doing. Even if I'm not hitting my goals, I'm still doing my best to get at least something done every day.
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