A friend asked recently, ‘What are you, a poet, a playwright, a novelist,
a film script creator? The answer is simple:
I am a writer…
I ask my computer if it is ready to consume the words I’m about to write
- daily, if life allows. I can feel its anticipation and sometimes I can’t type
fast enough for my brain. Then other times sit there for ages with the cursor
blinking, teasing, inviting but performance anxiety gets to me and nothing pops
into my head. I revert on occasion to simpler tools and choose to use pen and
paper. I can even sometimes feel the journey the words take from my brain,
along my arms and out through my fingers.
It’s enriched me, initiating a wonder about creativity. I look at things
different to how I used to. My awareness level peaks as I absorb things that
surround me. They were always around me I just didn’t appreciate them. Now, I
don’t just read a poem once; I read it again and again. I don’t just look through
book; I immerse myself in it. I don’t just watch a play; I admire the work that
has gone into producing the work I am enjoying. I don’t just go see a movie; I
appreciate how it is constructed. I think about what the person may have
thought when they wrote the verses, chapters or scripts. How they sat down and put
everything together.
It also awakened the critic in me. I find I edit everything, people speaking,
reporters on television, D.J.’s on the radio, magazines, and newspaper
articles. Friends, although this is a tricky one and I tend to keep it zipped
for fear of losing said friendship. It’s funny because I also edit myself. I
find that I have to stop and spell the simplest of words that rolled off my
tongue before.
When I began writing a few years ago I had all the
time in the world although I didn’t realise it then but now it feels like I had.
In the meantime life happened and my writing time became more focused, on a
deadline, snatched between other daily tasks. I actually had to create a time
management schedule to ensure I gave myself adequate time to write. The
restricted moments gives me more focus. If I only have an hour then it has to
get done within that time frame. No arguments, anyway it’s no fun quarrelling
with yourself!
Most of all I love
the journey writing takes me on. By sharing it I can bring others along too. I
don’t need a vehicle to transport my readers, I don’t need to tax and insure my
computer or paper. It’s a free ride on an adventure because I am a writer.
So, over to you: Have you limited time to write? If
so, how do you focus your time? Do you reach your goals, targets? Or do you
wish you could do more.
Please comment and share. Thanks for reading.
Marie
