COULD THERE BE A BETTER TIME THAN NOW TO WRITE?

Could there be a better time to write than this very day? 

Each of us has made a sacrifice or two, or many, this past year. For some, it was giving up our sacred writing corner. Remember that ordinarily quiet area where you sought inspiration, pondered a character's temperament, or whipped a challenging plot into shape? Then, one day, you discovered it had become someone else's temporary workplace or school desk.

Whatever your reality has been of late, know that you are not alone. It has been tough. At least it has been in my writing world. 

I am a writer that creates best while in the zone. Alone. What is the zone, you might ask? It is any place where I can write without interruption. Noises distract me. Oh, I love a well-manicured lawn, but I can't stay in my writing zone when the grass is being cut just outside my window. And don't get me started on the taunting sounds of a gas-powered weedeater or leaf blower crisscrossing the sidewalk out front. I may as well do the laundry. How on earth Stephen King writes with raucous music blaring is beyond me!

You've been here, I'm sure. The words are flowing like molten lava across the page, and the scene (or character or dialogue) is poised to come together. You smile. Resolution is just on the other side of your protagonist's innermost thoughts. You can't type fast enough. You are on a roll, and then KABOOM! 

Now, you and I both know that it doesn't matter what caused your fingertips to abandon the keyboard, leaving those characters in a trail of dust. What's done is done.

I wring my hands, hoping and praying to recapture the protagonist's mood or smooth out the jagged and disjointed words of a character's dialogue. Those well-sculpted thoughts had not yet reached the ends of my fingertips. "Breathe," I whisper. Inhale, exhale, hoping against all odds, to slip back into my zone. Instead, my mind wanders.

What the heck was that anyway?! 

The possibilities ricochet around my head. Was that the mail? The neighbor? The baby? The dog? For the time being, it no longer matters. And I head to the laundry room, promising to get back to it once the noises cease and the world around me sleeps.

After reading Bernard N. Lee, Jr.'s A Look Back In Time, Vols. I and II, humorous and inspiring tales of his life as a military brat, I want to share his untitled poem. I found Bernard's words provided the nudge I needed to refocus and carry on. This very day. Maybe they will work some magic on you too. 

If you knew your light was dimming,

But had memories left to share,

Would you take the time to write them,

Or wonder who would care?

If you found your past was fading,

And your present fleeting too,

Would you capture it for those you love,

As I have tried to do?

We are here for precious moments,

Very soon we will be gone,

So I choose to share my memories,

Maybe they will linger on.

                   ~ Bernard N Lee, Jr., A Look Back In Time

There's no time like the present. Indeed.

I hope you will join us in the next Six-Week Writing Session via Zoom. Click on the CLASSES tab at the top of this page for the schedule and more information. Who knows, you may end up writing your story, family history, or pure fiction short stories like others in the group. Hope to see you there!