The human brain never ceases to amaze me. Out of a simple idea that inspired my mind many years ago, I have recently penned, in the short span of three weeks, what could easily amount to half a novel. I have had moments when the words just seem to flow out of a long-buried well of ideas and I feel like the vessel being used to convey someone else’s words.
I have been roused in the wee hours by the voices of my characters, longing to continue our journey and last night was no different. But once I was awake, my mind simply spun in circles and my thoughts had nothing to do with the book.
If I could calculate how many thoughts went through my brain from 2:00 am to 4:30 am, the number would be astronomical. I had mentally cleaned out my car to get ready for my new car, planned my entire week at work, organized five weekends of volunteers for my food bank project, put together my next shopping list, and quite possibly have solved world hunger. My neurons were firing on more cylinders than I even have in my head. After three hours of rapid cranial activity, I finally drifted back to sleep and woke this morning to continue writing.
That sound of crickets was all I got. I had nothing on my mind. It was mutiny. There were no whispers from the characters, no idle nudges from them asking me to go in the direction they saw fit….nothing. I couldn’t even formulate a thought about my day-to-day life. It was like my cerebrum had decided to enjoy the last day of March break and left me behind.
Only now am I starting to regain the mental aptitude to be able to string together these sentences. The characters are still nowhere to be found so the book remains idle. I now truly understand the phrase ‘feast or famine’ and can only hope they will be back tomorrow and ready to get back to work. We have a book to finish.
I think you have done very well to pen what you have. I lack everything that needs to go in a novel which is why I only do the very small pieces i do, and even then Ive not written anything new for ages, everything on my blog is reblogs currently as I try and sort out the mess of how the pages are set up.
There is certainly no guideline for writing….that would make it so much easier! 🙂
True, but then everyone would do it 🙂
It’s a trick! Your characters are uncomfortable about where their lives are leading. Drag them forward! Write anyway!
You are write. I will beat them into submission when I get home and force them to get their shit together. 😀
Attagirl!
Notice my incorrect but purposeful use of ‘write’ in my comment….lol
You were absolutely correct, Mike. I just needed to speak to the right character. 🙂
Awesome!