Working

"People just don't think of writing seriously. If I had been going off to teach all day, it would have been different. They wouldn't interrupt your work if you were employed at a grocery store. That's considered serious business. It's because you work at home. People think they can interrupt writing." -Jessamyn West


I have been working up a storm lately. Today I wrote over 3,300 words, breezing through what I thought would be one of the toughest parts of the book from an artistic standpoint without difficulty in the process. I feel that I am in the groove, so to speak.

But that comes at a price. There is a psychological term, 'flow', which is what they use to describe a state where the participant is completely absorbed in their work. Outside stimuli dim and the worker develops a kind of tunnel vision. I get that a lot these days and it's great from a writing standpoint, but I'm completely useless at the end of the day. My brain is on a different plane of existence.

The upshot of which is, I forgot my son's after-school class today. I was fully aware and conscious that it was happening, I made plans, and I was ready. I even looked at the clock to be sure I wasn't late but somehow the numbers didn't register properly. By the time I realized my mistake it was far too late.

Hopefully the book sells well and makes up for my absent-mindedness.

Oh, and the quote that I led in with. I'm going to have that inscribed on a brass plaque to place on my writing room door. When I have the money for brass plaques and doors and a writing room. In the meantime I'll just think it really hard at anyone who interrupts me.