Shut Up & Write

I had a great conversation today with my sister about writing.  I told her that, if I were to be completely honest with anyone (booorrrring!), the truth is -- I have more unfinished pieces than finished.  Coming up with ideas is never a problem.  My insanely vivid and bizarre nightly dreams provide ample resources.  I could probably become rich and famous just blogging the weird & wacky places my mind travels each night.  Ideas are easy.  There is a very small list of things I know I do well as a writer.

In case you're wondering, dialog is not on this list.

Neither is finishing the damn thing.

I get angry.  I get mopey.  I get depressed.  I get more snacks out.  I get on Facebook.  I get the insane notion to research bits and pieces about my story that don't really need to be researched quite yet, and spend hours looking for obscure information.  I get tired.  I get a headache.  I get many, many things.

What I do not get, my friend, is further along in the storyline.

Last night, I was listening to a podcast at Writing Excuses and realized that I have GOT to stop staring at the same paragraphs, revising, rearranging, and rendering myself useless.  It doesn't matter if it's slop, at this point.  I have an entire storyline in my head.  I know where it ends.  I know the major conflict.  I play it out in my head over and over.

But when I see it on paper (word processor? stone tablet? whatever.) I get skittish.  Suddenly the words seem silly, the ideas aren't always what I thought they would be, there are parts that lag and need tweaking.

When I let my OCD Evil Twin take over, I will tweak that one part until my fingerprints disappear from manic typing.

So.  So what?  After the podcast ended, I just wrote.  I winced at some of the words, but kept going, knowing I will definitely go back later, because if I never push the story along, there will never be a story.

And that would be a miserable regret to look back on.

I started this post with the idea that I would give you a list of reasons (it was going to be ironic! sarcastic! witty!) why I can't write today.  But I guess even I have to admit, the only thing that ever truly keeps me from writing, is me.

**Interestingly enough, as I was sitting down to write this, I decided to check out a few of my new favorite blogs, and over at Shannon Messenger's blog, she's talking about writer's block, or the lack thereof.  Check it out!**