Of Swings and Solutions

You would probably recall that I talk about how I try to post within my three day cycle; keeping a regular schedule shouldn’t be a problem, because ideas are not hard to come by for me, and I also happened to have a list of topics ready to choose from.

Strangely enough, with all those fancy rules of mine, you would also notice the delays between my posts of late. Odd for me to call attention to it myself, I know… but I’m blowing the whistle. Yes, on myself.

Three day cycles turning into four, and five… I haven’t been up to my usual standard, obviously. And this worries me, because I have the annoying tendency to not be able to stick to things for very long before getting tired of them.

I managed to get bored of movies and serials for about a month. True story. This happened to be the same month in which I did not have any new books to read, either. Needless to say, that was one awful time in my life. (shudder)

Back to the point…. I am slacking. I know exactly why I am. And worse, I know exactly what I can do to get over it.

Why am I not writing? Simple reason….

I don’t want to.

On The Parents of Progress

The saying goes that necessity is the mother of all invention. Sure, maybe. It certainly is probable enough, if you just take it in, nod, and then continue scrolling down Facebook (which is where you probably saw the quote, in meme format) like I do most of the time.

But if you gave it any amount of thought, you’d probably see that it can’t be all there is. There has got to be more to invention than simply necessity. Boredom? Tools and parts lying around? Wife mad at you and chased you out to the garage, with nothing else to do till morning?

To say that necessity alone is the source of invention would be like saying that the patty alone makes a good burger. Which, as you know quite well, it does not.

 

I rest my case

Then, you ask, what metaphorical element would the bun represent, supposing we continue with that metaphorical burger? (Ignore the condiments, they're the smaller stuff, like that night in the garage). Well, to be blunt, I believe that a big, very big, part of invention stems from…. wait for it….. laziness.

The Tale of The Cat and The Monkey - When TIWs Gather

And it happened again.

Ever since the shenanigans that Dani J Caile and I got up to on account of Neal’s goatee, I have instinctively been looking out for a time when Dani and I could do a similar bit of creative dueling once more. Apparently, he’s been looking out for the same thing, but neither of us seemed to find a convenient enough avenue to start it off.

Until the other day, when Dani decided to take matters into his own hands.

Everything worthwhile needs something good to kick it off; in this case, the kick off happened innocently enough. All I did was share a picture on my timeline. This one, to be exact.

A few hours later, I saw this. Innocent enough, you would say. Not to him, and not to me.

Of course, I did what you would expect me to have done. The gauntlet had been thrown. The time had come once more. So I drew my Sword of Creativity and plunged in. 

The Iron Writer Challenge #68

Since joining the Iron Writers, my newly blossoming career took a turn for the better in a way I had never fully expected.

Hanging out with those experienced writers is a truly amazing experience; having them talk and treat you like an equal, being able to ask them for advice, and poking at each other in our regular banter, each of them backing you and cheering you up when you feel down… I feel truly blessed to be a part of this group.

Of course, there was a catch to all that. I still had to take part in some of those beastly weekly challenges… and I remain as useless at flash fiction as a plumber at aeronautical engineering. But if I’m to stick around at The Iron Writer, sooner or later I will have to spar in another challenge, and another.  The only way I’m going to manage to survive… would be to (ugh) practice.

So, like the fool that I usually am, I signed up for another challenge, and a few more down the road as well. What was I thinking, you ask? I probably wasn’t thinking anything; if I was, I wouldn’t have done this to myself.

So here we are again, and its Challenge 68… my second Iron Writer bout. And this time, I was up against even more experienced adversaries.

An Arr-gument of Sorts

You all know that I’m in the middle (or, to be more accurate, near the beginning) of The Legend of Charzahn. I really need to pick up my pace, but that’s beside the point of today’s ramble.

As any writer should know, I’m taking pains to get my story done. The thinking, the writing, the eventual editing, then the scrapping of probably over half of my work, then the re-edits, and so on.

And that’s just one of my books. I have more in the back of my head. Way, waaaay more.

What do I hope to gain out of all this?

Well, a feeling of accomplishment, definitely. A modest degree of popularity, and recognition for my developing talents. Good friends who understand my efforts. And a rabid fan following screaming my name as I step out of the limousine would be nice, too. Hey, I’m just saying, I wouldn’t turn it down if I ever got offered it, alright?

Then there’s this:

No arguing with wanting that, is there?

And, well, let’s not beat around the bush. I also happen to want to make money.

Who doesn’t?

From Rhinos To Castles

One thing I can never stress enough is how darn lucky I am to have met each and every one of you. Having the chance to talk you amazing people, hearing what you have to say… it more than makes all the hard work worthwhile. I know that I deserve less than half of the praise you give me, but I appreciate it, all the same.

You have to know, though; if you think you like my work, then without a doubt, you’d be knocked over by what my sister can do.

I’ve taken the name Wordweaver as part of my pseudonym; I know what a lofty title that is, and it’s because that’s how good I eventually want to work myself up to be. But my elder sister, SH? If anyone deserved the title Wordweaver, she’s the one. She’s always had a way with words that I could never hope to match, and if she ever starts writing again, as I hope that she eventually will, you’ll be in be in for something special.

On Time And Time Again...

Recently, I realized that there was this one question I kept hearing every so often. Every other week or so, I would see this topic as a meme online, as a status on Facebook, or I’d overhear one of my friends mentioning it, or something.

And when I didn’t see it anywhere, it would cross my mind at odd moments during my regular contemplations. Yep, I contemplate a lot. Where else do you think my many ideas come from?

By now, I’m hoping you’re curious enough to wonder what in the world I’m rambling on about this time.

The question in question, my friend; if you ever somehow got the chance to go back in time, or relive a few years of your past… how much would you change?

Photo Credits : Robbert van der Steeg