This past weekend, I got a ton of shit done. I channeled my inner OCD'er and finally put away the mass amount of birthday presents from both kids' birthdays the week prior. (Bounce house party overload, anyone?) I cleaned out my inbox. I cleaned out my outbox. I ordered my Christmas cards. I put my books in alphabetical order by genre. All to avoid the one thing that I HAD to do.
Write the next chapter of our third book.
You'd think I'd be dying to dig in. I'm loving the concept and what we've written so far. In fact, dare I say that I think this is by far the best work we've ever done?! We've finally learned to say more with less and for once we aren't making writing decisions based what we think others want to read-we're writing what WE WANT to read. And it's surprised us both what a huge difference that small change is making.
So then why the hell did I have to practically reorganize my entire house before I could sit down and write?
Fear.
As many of you know, there's so much fear that goes into writing. Fear that you won't be able to create the magic you did last week. Fear that your writing partner is going to tear the shit out of it. Fear that you're pouring your heart and soul into something that may not ever see the light of day.
So for me, it's all about writing that first word. If I can get past that, then I know I'll find my sweet spot again. That's why it's the scariest. On the way to our writing retreat a few weeks ago, I sat on the plane, fingers poised, doubting myself, thinking my time might be better served getting drunk with the cute guy sitting next to me. The fear I felt about that first word was so overwhelming that I felt physically sick, and it wasn't from the all the Barcardi and coke drinking going on around me. (Btw, Barcardi? Really? The year 2000 called, they want their drink back...)
But on the first day of our retreat, I finally did it. I wrote the first word of the first chapter of what will hopefully be our breakout book. And you know what? Once I got over that hump, the words flowed from my fingers for two days straight.
So when I found myself in the same position a few weeks later, I knew the drill. Just put on those earphones with my new favorite song, drown out MarioKart and SpongeBob and start writing. Simple, right?
Maybe. All I know is my house is always the most organized when I'm writing a book. But maybe next time I'm faced with fear, I can pop over, read this post, and remember it's all gravy after that first word.
In honor of NaNoWriMo, we want you tell us what the hardest part of the writing process is for you. Leave a comment and you'll be entered to win a copy Skipping A Beat by one of our favorite authors, Sarah Pekkanen. We'll choose the winners on Sunday, November 20th after 6pm PST.
xoxo,
Liz