I have found the companion of Writer’s Block. It creates the opposite effect; however, they produce the same results.
Like I mentioned in my last post, I was doing quite well with my writing project. I got to 67k by the end of July and then I spent the first weekend of August out of state for a mini-vacation. So once I got back, I took a break from writing and instead sorted through all the scenes I had written and placed them in order, right into the actual Word document that contains the official story. I then managed to figure out what I needed to write in most of the not-yet-written chapters (I guess you could call them “bridge” chapters because that’s essentially what I feel like they are.)
Therefore, all I basically had to do was to write those remaining chapters (which would certainly surpass the 75k mark), edit the heck out of, and then declare the project finished. (I don’t intend on publishing it in any way, so I could skip the peer editing stuff.) I may not have finished it in the middle of August like I originally planned, but it was still possible to complete it before September.
But then early in the week of August 10th, I got slammed with Writer’s Block’s companion.
Shiny New Idea. (Otherwise known as: SNI)
Shiny New Idea provided my brain with a few new characters and their particular story arc, along with scenes. SNI forced me to jot these ideas down on pieces of paper and next thing I know, I’m drawing a rough sketch of the world map. I’m currently in the middle of making up names and physical character descriptions.
Good-bye fantasy/adventure/action story that I was working on since June. Hello anthropomorphic saga!
Ugh. I was so close to finishing that writing project that I could taste it.
But it doesn’t matter now because I’m currently obsessed with the saga story. Why must you do this to me, brain? Why? I was almost done with that previous story. I can’t give up on it now.
So I guess I’m taking a break from that writing project? It frustrates me that I’ve sort of turned my back on it and I know that, in time, that Word document is going to taunt me with the fact that it’s not quite finished.
Darn you, SNI! You’ve successfully prevented me from finishing another writing project.
I just have to keep reminding myself that I have never not finished a large writing project. And that’s exactly what that fantasy/adventure/action story was. I will complete it eventually…even if I have to make myself the goal of seeing it to the end before the start of 2016.
In the meantime, I’ll be working on my new story.
