Of Unfulfilled Desires August 20, 2007
Posted by Jen in : Journal , trackbackGrrrrrrrrrr. I’m getting on my own nerves which, I’m sure you’ll agree, is not an entirely good thing. The cause? My frantically fickle nature.
O, for the joy of being non-working and having time to write my novel. It’s all I want to do, the very essence of my being that drives me on.
Coolio. Job abandoned. But, ooh, now I have time to do other things. Perhaps poetry will be my thing, despite me being a bit crap at it. Short stories then. Yes, I could enter competitions. Cue a mountain of Writing Magazines piled around my head in bed this morning. God, I’m so inspired, this is the solution I’ve been seeking. Use competitions as prompts to write stories and if I don’t win (of course I’ll win, this is my thing man!) I can send them out to magazines who will surely want to publish them, thereby allowing me just enough money to carry on being non-working and writing my novel. God, genius or what?
So, what to write? Cue random mind-mapping. Being a gluttonous Taurean, food tends to feature in most ideas. Of course! Sod fiction - I’ll write features about food! Ooh, what about noodles? I quite fancy becoming a master of stir-fries. Cue gormless wandering around house without specs to search for Wagamama Cookbook.
I have now been up for almost two hours but achieved bugger all. I’ve had lots of ideas though, that’s good isn’t it? Oh, that reminds me, I must read my book about getting ideas, that’ll help.
Ugh. I’m doomed to lead a life chasing rainbows. Sounds quite poetic though. Maybe I could write a poem about it?
My mother summed up my poetic, rainbow-chasing nature years ago.
“Oh, you’re never bloody happy. Stop fannying about. Just decide what you want to do then bloody well do it.”
She’s very sweet like that. But there’s a problem.
I want it all and I want it now.
Comments»
This is how I was too. Remember my long ‘to do’ list a few weeks ago? I’m doing the same now as I think about son starting school. Come September. I am going to have soooo much time. I’ll be able to do soooo much. Write a few short stories to give me a bit of pocket money every month, get a few features out every month, edit my novel, set up another blog site (cake being the main subject) and oooh, did you see? The Times are running a children’s fiction competition….
Get your target word count done for your book every day. After that you can write short stories or articles or whatever. Just make your book your priority. That’s what I did and it helped. BTW noticed your word count is on 46% - brilliant. x
Heh. It could be worse - you could have reduced everything down to degrees of pointlessness and be wondering which one would be the least pointless. Remind me not to let myself get so tired…
Oh Helen, don’t even mention the Times’ competition - I think lovely bf has hidden it from me so that I don’t have anything else to want to do! I actually am following your advice already, oh wise one… novel-writing in the morning then other stuff in the afternoon. I find myself quite drained after heaving out a 1,000 words or so though - I am such a lightweight
Am looking forward to your cake blog to drool over very much.
Hedgewizard: Don’t let yourself become so tired… Actually you do sound rather down in the dumps. A hammock in a poly-tunnel is recommended by Nurse Jenny
Oh Jen, your darling ma’s advice would be perfect….were I able to decide exactly what it is I want to do… Would it help if I could tell her at length what it is don’t want to do?
I think we’re all just a little too spoiled for choice.
I’m always drained after 1000 words too and find myself wandering around various blogs etc (like now) and not getting much more done. Wonder if it is like exercise training and we’ll be able to do more as we get more experienced?!
LQS - Not knowing what you want to do is the worst thing ever! You’re just a young thing though - knowing what you don’t want to do is a very good start. It’s a bit like wiggling a bowl to make the lumps come to the surface… Oh dear, I’ve just made life become scone mix…
Helen, thank the lord it’s not just me! But. If we wrote 1,000 words a day, we’d have a novel done in 3 months. So perhaps we’re doing ok as we are?
Hello Ancient Jen! I’ll be 30 in November, I’ll have you know. Not that much of a young thing.
Oh, I completely understand, Jen.
Mmm, I’m with LQS, I just have no idea except this one… but I’m not going down the ‘what if it doesn’t work out?’ path just yet.
Oh, okay, then: If it doesn’t work out, I’ll go work in a bookshop. There. Decision made. An uncomplicated life working in a bookshop.
hee hee - I totally understand - I’m blessed with a fickle nature myself. Always, always thinking up new (brilliant and creative and lucrative) life directions.
LQS - I rest my case, little one!
Angie - If only we had some secret hours in the middle of the day to fit it all in, eh?
JJ - The ‘what if it doesn’t work out’ option is not featuring in my brain. Positive manifestation. Seriously. I really believe in that.
Rebecca - Yes! That’s the thing! The ideas are all completely genius - and they did lead to a bloomin scrumptious stir-fry last night made out of real ingredients!! Hallelujah, praise be to our fickle, floating thoughts…
Jen,
Thanks for dropping by my blog. I hope that you enjoyed it. If you scroll all the way to the bottom, there is a link to my first post about writing a book–that was over a year ago and I haven’t done much since. Perhaps “chasing the rainbow” is really what we want to do.
Jen at least you have schemes and ideas some poor sods have no ambitions and no hopes. I have lots of plans but I’m still waiting to find out what I want to do when I grow up
Ha! I can totally relate. I’m constantly torn between editing my novel, starting a new one, writing a new short story, sending out some old ones, writing a children’s book, writing a children’s story or writing a story to a theme for a particular competition. I feel like I’m spreading myself really thin at the moment and getting not very much of any of the above done. I don’t know why I feel this urge to get as much done as possible RIGHT NOW and need to slow down or I’m soooooo gonna burn out.
*takes a deep breath*
One thing at a time…
John, hi. I didn’t get as far as your novel link, will check it out! I have to say, though, I am determined to find that pot of gold.
Karen - Being a late developer is groovy. I do feel sad for people who genuinely have no drive or ambition. There again, they probably don’t have wrinkles and grey hairs!
Cally - you’ve hit the nail on its noggin. I feel sooo excited about every competition, every opportunity going but I guess focusing is they key. And, yes, remembering to breathe…
Hi Jen,
I’ve had novel two vaguely mapped out in my head for some time now. Come the end of the month Sprog will be back at school, time will be a-plenty (well, as plentiful as it ever gets around here when there’s so much nature stuff to take care of) and I’ll have to start committing novel two to computer. I predict a rush of extremely important sock-darning sessions, essential fridge-cleaning, hours of staring out the window at the buzzards, knitting Spouse a new suit - anything to avoid sitting down and getting on with the bloody thing. What if it turns out to be crap?!
Mya x
Oh Mya, I rarely resort to any sort of cleaning activity - and, as for knitting a suit, that did make me chortle. But yeah, gazing out of the window does sometimes take precedence. I feel your pain. I’m terribly keen to know more about your Novel No 1 - title?
X