For as much enjoyment and serenity that can come out of writing, there are huge chunks of violent loathing that make you want wreck everything around you. This is a promise. Everything will be fine in your happy little world until a character starts to back-talk or you know for a fact that nothing of interest happens as they trudge from point A to point B, but you can't make things up, and you can't magically teleport them there - though one day it might be nice to write in an anything-goes world. There are no solutions. You try to handle it like an adult. You try to reason out with your characters, with your writing support groups, but it's pretty clear that there is nothing you can do but trudge along yourself. Also like an adult, when you realize that things aren't going your way and that the only thing to do is just endure and move forward, you throw the biggest adult hissy fit of all time. And then, once you've calmed down because someone has fed you chocolate while stroking your hair and rocking you back and forth, whispering soothing sounds of the ocean, you suck it up and deal with it, like an adult... *insert something here about how some guy showed up and made it all better* Problem solved! And then you carry on your merry way and enjoy a novel well written!
Once you've finished the party of the year because you've placed those two little words at the end of your first draft, The End, the "I can do anything!" part of you is ready to tackle stage 2 : Editing. Sure it's all fun and games. You get to remember how quaintly you introduced your characters, and how innocent they were before you crumbled their lives in your hands like silly putty. Then you hit that same wall where past you called it a night and let future you tag team for the rest of the journey. That's when you realize that past you is the biggest asshole ever! Why couldn't past you just handle the one thing she had to do? Finish the first draft!
So current you, who was future you, who thought you just had to look for typos and inconsistencies when you forgot what you named that dude who popped up like 8 chapters later, has to figure out what the hell past you was even talking about!!!!
Current me would like to think that I will never put future me in this position ever again. Future me knows not to trust past me farther than she can throw me, and that's not very far since they have difficulty being in the same room together.
As I was telling a friend earlier today: Past me thinks that future me is kinder, more patient, and very forgiving. Current me knows that future me is a cranky old bat out for vengeance.
A word of advice for all those "don't do today what you could do tomorrow" people - stock up on treats and presents, put them in a cupboard with your name on it. Your future yous are waiting, and some of them have baseball bats! Appease them like merciless gods.
Oh, and, happy writing! :)
Once you've finished the party of the year because you've placed those two little words at the end of your first draft, The End, the "I can do anything!" part of you is ready to tackle stage 2 : Editing. Sure it's all fun and games. You get to remember how quaintly you introduced your characters, and how innocent they were before you crumbled their lives in your hands like silly putty. Then you hit that same wall where past you called it a night and let future you tag team for the rest of the journey. That's when you realize that past you is the biggest asshole ever! Why couldn't past you just handle the one thing she had to do? Finish the first draft!
So current you, who was future you, who thought you just had to look for typos and inconsistencies when you forgot what you named that dude who popped up like 8 chapters later, has to figure out what the hell past you was even talking about!!!!
Current me would like to think that I will never put future me in this position ever again. Future me knows not to trust past me farther than she can throw me, and that's not very far since they have difficulty being in the same room together.
As I was telling a friend earlier today: Past me thinks that future me is kinder, more patient, and very forgiving. Current me knows that future me is a cranky old bat out for vengeance.
A word of advice for all those "don't do today what you could do tomorrow" people - stock up on treats and presents, put them in a cupboard with your name on it. Your future yous are waiting, and some of them have baseball bats! Appease them like merciless gods.
Oh, and, happy writing! :)
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