It's March and time for the Slice of Life Challenge! Thanks so much to the entire crew at Two Writing Teachers for organizing and hosting this massive event! You are all rock stars!
I'm excited to be part of the Challenge again this year. As I continue to tap into "joy" as the motivation for my writing, I am also tracking the territories about which I tend to write (and sometimes intertwine). Current writing territories are teaching, family, friends, travel, working with a personal trainer. Today my territory is about the quirks of being me. ;)
So many friends have posted during this Challenge how
they get up early in the morning to do their writing while no one else is
around. By getting up early, it appeared that their houses were quiet, and they
had their words and thoughts all to themselves as they composed for the
day.
The descriptions of peaceful writing (some even had
posted pictures) - this was too good to pass up. I wanted to try to create the
same writing atmosphere for myself that existed for others. Something I already
knew about myself as a writer is that I need a quiet space for
thinking, writing, and contemplation. I can't write with lots of other
activity or noise in the house. Early mornings might just be the answer.
With that in mind, this past Wednesday, I set my alarm
an hour earlier than usual:
Alarm blares; my hand tries to
smack it into submission
Roll out of bed
Stumble to the bathroom to find
my robe
Eyes are only opened to slits
Hair sticks up every which way
Decide it's not worth trying
to tame
Drool marks on both sides of my
chin
Head downstairs
Open my laptop
Settle into my comfy writing
corner
Begin to type
Startled awake when I hear a
toilet flush upstairs
Realize there is fresh drool on
my keyboard
and 15 minutes have passed since
I came downstairs
Only a title for my #SOL and 1
word in the body
(did I mention some drool on the
keyboard, too?)
Groggily shake my head
and begin to type again
A few paragraphs and ideas
emerge
but at a start and stop, start
and stop rate
And the clock tells me it's time
to get ready for school
Reread my draft during my lunch
break
and begin to laugh
Have to revise - basically
rewrite the entire thing
Boy, am I glad I got up so early!
Moral of story: Embrace who you are as a writer. Also,
try not to drool on your keyboard when typing.
Thank you for this smile! I find that my writing takes place at all hours of the day or night (night owl here). Sometimes, those early morning writes just rock, while others end up to be edited later on with "what was I thinking" going through my head! Thank you for your slice today, and keep your keyboard cover close by! :)
ReplyDeleteYes! I feel somehow less efficient because I can't write in the morning before work, but it just doesn't work for me!
ReplyDeleteSo funny! I need quiet to write too--and though I aspire to the morning slice, it rarely happens for me.
ReplyDeleteEmbrace who you are as a writer. This is so wise. At the same time, we can sometimes change, especially if we are motivated to write. I thought I could never write anything after 9 a.m. Now I realize that I have more writing times in me than I thought.
ReplyDeleteGreat moral!
ReplyDeleteYour moral is mine, Karen - you just have to write when YOUR moment calls. Your poem, though, was great fun to read.
ReplyDeleteYou may have quiet in your home at normal times of the day -- embrace that!! Love your slice and love that you made it a poem. I love funny poems - when I grew up I always thought of poetry as so serious. I love how humor is now present in this genre. One tip -- you forgot the coffee!!!
ReplyDeleteClare
My first post for the #SOL was about how jealous I am of all the "morning people". I feel your pain.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post! I, like you, need quiet time to write. I am a slow writer and the word rarely drop onto the page with ease. You will find your writing routines, even if they aren't in the early morning hours. But, keep writing, keep writing, keep writing.
ReplyDeleteThe thread of "drool" all the way through makes this a light-hearted fable. Thanks for making me smile.
ReplyDeleteMorgan - if you see my response, what is your blog called? Thanks!
DeleteHa! This made me smile ... as I wrote about not being a morning person already. And the morale of your slice is right on! Embrace yourself as a writer and embrace all that you require to be that writer to share your stories!
ReplyDeleteHa! Karen, you need to be who you are, not who everyone else is. I get up fairly early, but couldn't write earlier, my best time, late evening, & even when I was teaching. It just seems to work better. You wrote this as a comedian would. You are a writer!
ReplyDeleteOh Karen we just might be sisters. That morning writing is so overrated! I prefe sleeping when my house is quiet! Lol
ReplyDelete