A missive in which I consider the consequences of believing that writing should be hard work and the necessity of bringing more ease into my writing practice.
I love this one. I've often been criticized? ... maybe questioned by other writers, teachers etc. about how much I enjoy writing, filling yellow pads with a mess of ink. Like, "I like this, but maybe it would be better if you worked harder," as if I couldn't both work hard at editing etc. and still be having fun. As you maybe remember, I'm a huge fan of enjoying the process, and writing without expectation. That said, even I need to be occasionally reminded, and your article found me at one of those rare moments. I was coming off of a writing retreat and it was too short, and so the pressure to make the most out of that time translated into a pressure to write and make every sentence count. And some of that followed me home. And then I read your piece today and it was exactly the brain shift I needed. Thanks for getting me back on track!!!
Absolutely best outcome from anything I've ever posted anywhere! I'm so pleased it helped you to reorient yourself. I did not remember this about your practice, though of course now that I'm thinking about it, it feels like I did once know. :) I personally no longer understand why we would want to do anything that didn't feel at least a little bit enjoyable. We're in these meat suits for such a short period. And I totally agree, this essay actually, the first draft that came out easefully, it wasn't a bad draft, but it had a tone and an angle that I later found wasn't the best iteration of itself. It took some time and work to pinpoint what it actually was trying to be. And I probably could have taken another swipe at editing, but I'm practicing imperfection. Otherwise I still have the annoying habit of reading through a draft a hundred thousand times or sitting on one for much too long. Always practicing. Always evolving. :D
I love this one. I've often been criticized? ... maybe questioned by other writers, teachers etc. about how much I enjoy writing, filling yellow pads with a mess of ink. Like, "I like this, but maybe it would be better if you worked harder," as if I couldn't both work hard at editing etc. and still be having fun. As you maybe remember, I'm a huge fan of enjoying the process, and writing without expectation. That said, even I need to be occasionally reminded, and your article found me at one of those rare moments. I was coming off of a writing retreat and it was too short, and so the pressure to make the most out of that time translated into a pressure to write and make every sentence count. And some of that followed me home. And then I read your piece today and it was exactly the brain shift I needed. Thanks for getting me back on track!!!
Absolutely best outcome from anything I've ever posted anywhere! I'm so pleased it helped you to reorient yourself. I did not remember this about your practice, though of course now that I'm thinking about it, it feels like I did once know. :) I personally no longer understand why we would want to do anything that didn't feel at least a little bit enjoyable. We're in these meat suits for such a short period. And I totally agree, this essay actually, the first draft that came out easefully, it wasn't a bad draft, but it had a tone and an angle that I later found wasn't the best iteration of itself. It took some time and work to pinpoint what it actually was trying to be. And I probably could have taken another swipe at editing, but I'm practicing imperfection. Otherwise I still have the annoying habit of reading through a draft a hundred thousand times or sitting on one for much too long. Always practicing. Always evolving. :D