11 April 2007

Mean Time


I haven't written here for a while and I am not loving this fact. It feels like a failure in some light shades of gray. Why the lapse? I'm waiting for inspiration.
I love to write. I have some fiction, some non-fiction, some light stuff and some dark stuff. I enjoy many forms.
What I am not crazy about is the act of rambling in the form of writing. And you may now be asking yourself "Well, then what the hell is this I'm reading, if not rambling?" And to that I say, "Shut up and go read your Cheerios box instead." No wait, don't leave. Come back. Sorry.

Anyway. . . . . not wanting to compromise my 'new' Web log with words for the sake of quantity, I waited. And I waited. And nothing came to me. Well, this is not exactly true, because I've written everyday for a couple of weeks, but for a number of very good reasons, these pieces are not fit for this forum. "Pieces of what?" might be a valid question. They vary in their unsuitability. Some are far too ordinary (you can thank me later), some are far too personal and revealing (I'll be thanking myself later) and the rest are still in various stages of development (we'll see who thanks who eventually).
Inspiration is a tricky thing, at least for me. In writing, there is nothing better than a really powerful, overwhelming surge of inspiration. I swear it's better than sex, or at least most sex. That wonderfully gratifying experience of your fingers not being able to ke ee p up wth teh flow of truley inspitired thought. Just a visual aid there. You're thinking about your Cheerios box right now, aren't you?
Unfortunately, inspiration is elusive. It can be encouraged and, in my experience, it can sometimes be prolonged, if I'm careful and gentle. I've seen inspiration beget inspiration. When it does show up, I hang on tight, because who knows when it will visit me again. It can't be counted on. It can't be scheduled or foreseen. So, without the ability to create inspiration on command, what should I do while I'm waiting? In the mean time?
Do you believe that writing, or any creative expression for that matter, that is not born of inspiration can still be moving, meaningful, special? Is it wise to simply plow through the motions of one's passion without the strongest of motivations? With out 'that' feeling? I'm counting on the answer being "YES!"
Someone (of whom I now have only the utmost regard and respect for) recently said to me, the eleven magic words every girl longs to hear. "Maybe you need to quit your job and write full time." Well, every girl writer longs to hear. These words would probably be lost on a girl motorcycle mechanic. Her eleven magic words would probably be "Maybe you need to quit your job and ride full time."
Do me a favor and the next time you see me, say "Write. Just write. Write when you're inspired; write when you're not. Just write and stop thinking about it so much. Geez!"

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