I used to complain about ADD muses. I still do, when I’m neck deep in edits and my guys want to go work on something(s) , anything(s) else. They used to be a lot worse, though. When I started writing way back when, one reason I never finished anything was the way new ideas came bobbing along, one after another until I could no longer resist chasing after the new shiny.
The past few years haven’t been like that. Sometimes I’d worry the idea well had dried up. Often the ADD muses didn’t have anything new, they just wanted to go work on something that needed less–well, work.
That worried me. If I had no new story ideas, the reasoning went, how long could I trust that the ideas I had (enough to last years, believe me) would be viable? Like gangrene, the grey death might well be creeping over my creative life, and then what would I do? All my dreams for the future–every last one–are inextricably linked to my writing. Not only might the rug be yanked from under me, but under the rug there lurked a tiger pit full of robotic tigers and also sharks with lasers on their heads.
As usual, I needn’t have worried. Since I turned over the Queen’s Man manuscript to my editor, I have taken almost this entire month off from writing. I’ve tried vacations before, but never lasted long. I think my last planned break was to be a month and I lasted a week, rationalizing it with “but I don’t want a vacation from writing! I love writing!”
This time, due to exhaustion and holidays and other things needing doing, I actually succeeded in mostly not writing. I read books. I watched a movie or two. I re-created my website. I poked at this and that in my written worlds, but I did no work. I just played.
Today I noticed that there are ideas. I have hints on how to fix Nemesis and finish her story. I can more clearly see what’s wrong with Ben’s story, that has kept me from writing it for so long. I know what to do to Donte’s book, and I remember things I meant to fix in that last pass through Queen’s Man.
Naomi’s magic is pestering me, and Remy from Beast wants attention. Joss of Queen’s Man always wants attention, of course, but it’s not so common for Donte to speak up–and now he is. Hiro and Eshan aren’t giving me any answers for book three, but they are campaigning to get on my writing agenda, so I have a means of blackmail at hand.
Of course, nearly all of them are just going to have to wait, since Queen’s Man is headed back to me soon. But the ideas are there. I’m so relieved, I could dance. Except this means it’s time to get to work again.
Onward!