Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Procrastinating Mental Wellness

I need to write the epilogue of my novel. I know kinda what I want to say. But I'm anxious about actually finishing it. The story. I'm in the process of revising the novel I wrote in three months three months ago. I'm scared and excited both. I feel like I'm about to go cliff diving, and it's something I've wanted to do my whole life, but I'm still wearing Depends just in case.

I might run some hose water into the hippo pool/fountain and let Katie play while I sit on the swing and write long hand in a notebook. When I was a young girl I had visions of myself sitting under an apple tree, eating a crunchy, juicy red apple with my left hand while writing in a notebook with my right hand. My write hand.

Any tips for a first time novelist struggling with anxiety? Other than taking clonazepam? Or any first time any creative endeavor? Tips on how you worked through the fear?

2 comments:

  1. I used to always be very nervous to share my writing, or my singing, with people. And yet I really really wanted to share it, I think partly because I thought it was good, and wanted to know if that was just me or did other people think it was good too? Anyway, I found that the more you share it, or in your case the more often you face that fear, the more manageable it becomes. You gotta take that first ride without the training wheels, and fall down a few times, before you start cruising more confidently down the drive.

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  2. Yes, agreed. Just doing it over and over again, I notice I forget about what a big deal it is. If I write and then think about it I start worrying, but if I just keep on writing and not over-thinking it, I push through the fear and then I feel proud of myself. But it's still so hard! :)

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