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Tuesday, September 27, 2011

The Fuckits

Writing is a struggle, sometimes.  Each one of us has a place or two where the fuckits hit.  Mine is when I get close to finishing a project.  When all I need to do is reread, polish and fill in the cracks.  This is what I've been fighting through in the final parts of Start Adventures.  When the fuckits hit, those voices in your head tell you who cares if it gets finished, you can put it off until tomorrow.  Does it matter if it gets done?  There are more important things to do like getting the dishes washed, mowing the lawn, folding the clothes and the wife...well, the wife is the one that tells you those things need done.  (Before I go any further Whisk would like everyone to know she never puts housework before my writing and she doesn't.) 

My latest problem was I thought I was much closer to being done than I thought.  I had written all the parts.  Even added a tavern and a short adventure.  But as I went through the edits I felt the tavern did not match the tone or voice of the other parts.  It was bland.  Too vanilla for my tastes.  Then I realized the book would benefit from having a new monster and magic item section.  That finish line got a lot farther away.  So I stalled. 

I love writing.  Whisk will tell you I get in a pissy mood if I don't.  But like most writers I have an amazing knack for avoiding the project I need to be working on.  The 360 and Netflix are wonderful for this.  But with the new campaign I'm running something sparked in me to get going on Starter Adventures again.  I rewrote the entire tavern and I like it a lot better now.  The other thing I've been messing with and not getting done is sending Rob the maps I need done.  That in part was due to my scanner being a pain, but now I've got it up and running (knock on simulated wood). The campaign has forced me to produce each week.  We've had three sessions so far and I've written up the general theme behind it, a campaign starter for the players, details of a fort with over 100 people, the land around it and one adventure.  The players are heading into a second part now so I'll need to get that complete before next Monday.  And this is what makes writing great, once you get going, the energy spent on getting the writing done returns to you stronger than before.  It builds on itself.  You see results and the next thing you know the fuckits are in the rear view mirror.

So in short....I caught a bit of the creative constipation, but I'm feeling much better now. 

7 comments:

  1. Glad to hear the fuckits have cleared up.

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  2. My biggest writing problem (besides limits in skill) is "did I f'n write that?" When I go back and read what wrote and it just doesn't measure up.

    The Fuckits certainly rear their multiple ugly heads. I usually have a peak in creativity that allows me to dodge the fuckits following a spell of satisfying work. The more work I have to do, the more work I can do.

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  3. I know how bad the fuckits can be when you're writing, and I can totally sympathize. I'm glad you've gotten past them now.

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  4. Always love seeing you write. Never dishes before writing. However, when dealing with procrastination or the Fuckits, I will continue to kill your characters on the 360 and disconnect the Netflix, as needed.

    Double Smooch.

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  5. I get the Fuckit's at the start. I have the idea, make the maps up, ect.ect. Just getting the ball rolling is the pain the the @ss.

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  6. Yeah, I'm in the middle of one of these episodes myself. Ugh.
    : (

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  7. Boy, do I have a case of these right now. I find that if I distance myself from the project for a few days and come back I'm all fresh and ready to go again.

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