WIP challenge: day 27 check-in!

[littlebutfierce]

We're on the home stretch for this month's challenge! How's it going?

Poll #8653 WIP challenge day 27 check-in!

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 8

View Respondents

How's the fic been going this weekend?

View Answers

It hasn't
5 (62.5%)

Amazingly
1 (12.5%)

All right
0 (0.0%)

Every word is WRONG
2 (25.0%)

What do you need to focus on for the last few days of this month's challenge?

View Answers

Writing
5 (62.5%)

Editing
3 (37.5%)

Sending to beta
1 (12.5%)

Researching
0 (0.0%)

Posting
1 (12.5%)

Taking a break
1 (12.5%)

Something else I will describe in comments
0 (0.0%)

For discussion: This blog post suggests there are two things people mean when they talk about having writer's block. The first is:

the hopeless confusion of not knowing what to write, having an "I don't wanna" feeling, and knowing that if one sits down to write, it's going to be hard and the product isn't going to be very good

& the second:

Sometimes, in addition to the whiny feeling of "I don't wanna," there's a voice that's trying to tell me, "No, quite seriously: I do not want to do this right now, and in fact, I can't, not without pushing too hard and doing damage to myself. It's not working and I need a break. I need to let my energy rest with something else for a while." Maybe that "something else" is something that's arisen in my life -- a crisis, a transition, a pending decision, something else I'd like to try -- or maybe it's nothing special or particular, just a new focus, or a quietness, stemming from the realization that now and then, a person needs a break.

Does this hold true for you? How do you tell the difference?

Comments

[littlebutfierce]

After hardly writing any fic for the past week or so, I'm really pleased that this is the second day in a row I've written actual fic. :P Not that it's complete or even close to it; not that the words are especially worth keeping. But! Getting back in the swing of things, I hope.

I think if I'm finding it hard to get through other things in my life (if it's not just writing that I'm finding difficult, but going to work, daily chores, sleeping, etc.), then it's pretty obvious that it's not writer's block but just me needing to focus on other things.

OTOH, sometimes I do better if I am pushed slightly, & sometimes I know that I could write more if I just nudged myself more. Once in the middle of a big fight during my teenage years, my dad said that I never do anything if someone doesn't push me to do it. I think that's mostly unfair, but there's a grain of truth to it. :P

[elistaire]

Oh, the writer's block discussion is so apt for me this month! Last month I had such energy! This month I had such exhaustion with family matters that even sitting down to write sounded like too much. I wasn't in a good emotional place to write. Things are better now and I'm trying to get back into the groove. No idea how you'd tell the difference between the above two types, other than just figuring out what the emotion set you're in is.

[littlebutfierce]

Oh, ugh, I'm sorry to hear that family stuff is so draining: both for its own sake & for the effect it has on your writing! I'm glad things are improving.

[elistaire]

Thank you. :)

[jagnikjen]

The original fic/WIP went really well--not quite amazing, but better than all right.

I did writing sprints with a CP and got a lot more accomplished with her on the other end of a chat session than I would have otherwise, so I'm really pleased with the progress over the course of the holiday weekend.

As for the discussion topic, I think both apply actually.

Sometimes, when I've had the house to myself all day and then I know the return of my family is imminent, then the writing goes away and I can't concentrate--temporary writers block. Similarly, if I'm upset, then it's harder to write as I can't concentrate. If I'm really stressed out or tired, then all I want/can do is use mindless entertainment as a crutch to get me through.

But both explanations/definitions are appropriate I think.

[littlebutfierce]

Woooo, yay for getting writing in there during a busy holiday weekend!!

If I'm really stressed out or tired, then all I want/can do is use mindless entertainment as a crutch to get me through.

Yessssss I know what that is like. Sometimes I'll try & at least do canon refresh for the entertainment, but if I am too tired to absorb details properly (never mind take notes on them if that's what is needed), then it doesn't help. >_

[bay_alexison]

Got close to 1,300 words on my help_japan. Story is going at a slow pace but things should pick up soon.

Both of those definitions I can relate. There were times if I got a lot going I wouldn't be in a good mood to write and would rather relax instead. Also sometimes I might not be able to figure out how to approach some of my stories so I would mull over that for a while.

[littlebutfierce]

Yay for all those words on your help_japan fic! As someone who still isn't done w/her help_japan story yet either, I salute you!!

[lacygrey]

The month in general and last week in particular:
Difficult to judge as its a frught time work-wise in RL but, overall, the editing has gone badly because incentives and goals don't seem to work for me in the same way as with writing. Ive done some new writing, which did seem to fuel the editing, even though it generated more editing work. I had some new ideas too, all for long fic and not fully fledged yet.


Writer's block descriptions:
This is exactly how I feel about filling in my tax form - a very specific form of nervous avoidance. Because its not a fic or a novel though, I can't claim that its a symptom of a 'creative mind' or a sign that I'm a 'true artist'. It concerns something frightfully mundane, but the root of the problem may be similar: filling in my income on the form is like making a statement of my worth, albeit indirectly, and thats hard.

I can feel rather intollerant of people who say that blocks are something reserved for and suffered by an elite of talented people.

On the other hand, it means I can relate to the problem and, from a practical point of view, Ive written a good deal of fic while putting off doing my tax.

[littlebutfierce]

Ive written a good deal of fic while putting off doing my tax.

Every cloud has a silver lining, apparently! :D

But yeah, I hear you on how the block for a specific thing can just get bigger & bigger. :/

[lilly_c]

Got no writing done at the weekend :( severe migraine made anything but lying down impossible. Today is the start of a new week so fingers crossed.

For me it's definitely the second example, especially when I want to write but I know that everything that comes out will be forced. I don't think there is a difference but of course both statements mean different things to different writers.

[littlebutfierce]

Sorry to hear about the migraine. :/ I hope this week goes better for you.

Sometimes I think if I force myself to write I can bust through the block (& sometimes I do!), but sometimes I just really have no creative juices to use. :/

[linaewen]

It's been hopeless trying to get any free time to concentrate on writing, particularly recently -- but the whole month has been a bit of a hassle in that regard!

My writer's block tends to be more like the first definition, though usually it's not actually writer's block -- it's more like a feeling I won't have enough time to spend getting into the writing because of outside pressures, so I don't even try because it's almost better to not write than to be interrupted and have it get spoiled.

[littlebutfierce]

Awww, I'm sorry to hear life's been too busy for writing!!

& oh, I hear you about not wanting to get interrupted just as you get stuck into writing! It can be really difficult to get back into the flow on a certain scene if interrupted at the wrong time.