But enough about politics.
My personal challenge continues to go well (I’m currently polishing Chapter 2), but I’m reminding myself to not get cocky. A few good weeks doth not a book make . . . not with me at least. I DO take satisfaction that things are going so well, of course, but we’re a LONG way from the finish line.
It has got me thinking about the “creative process” though. Some people need to be angry to be able to create, some people need to be sad . . . some people need to be in a “chemically altered state” (I knew a talented poet in college who was like that. For whatever reason, I had been assured by those in the know that his work when he was sober was just pathetic.), and on and on. It’s always a personal thing that allows someone access their creativity, and, as with other aspects of life, that thing isn’t always healthy in and of itself, but it always has a reason, like the man has to get drunk to cry because that’s the ONLY way for him to cry, and he NEEDS to cry sometimes.
Personally I try to shoot for my creative process to be a Zen thing. I generally write best when I’m content and happy (there have been exceptions . . . ), and when I start having difficulty is usually when something is out of whack somewhere in my life. The longer it takes me to gather the energy to get started for the day, the more out of whack something else.
This is actually a useful barometer, which is one of the reasons why I keep it. While there is a time and place to ignore something in favor of a larger concern (Like the time it felt like I had a wasp sting on my foot while I was driving in heavy traffic; NOT a good time to focus on the sting and ignore the tons of metal vehicles traveling at high speeds around me.), as a rule of thumb, if something is trying to get your attention, it’s generally doing so for a reason, and it’s usually worth taking the time to at least figure out what it is.
Trust me, it saves you time in the long run. If you can’t deal with it right away (which will likely happen from time to time) at least your choice can be an informed one.