The Art of Procrastination

At the beginning of this year I started a new part-time job working in the Adult Family Learning Services Department for my local council. Although a part-time position it has resulted in having a lot less time available to spent on my writing. So when, for the first time in three months I actually had an entire (yes two whole days) weekend free I planned to catch up with stuff that I’d neglected. However him-in-doors (who has always supported me – just soooooo lucky) suggested for those two days I became a ‘proper’ writer.  Having a work in progress (Coyote Tales Retold) which has been sitting on my desk and shouting “get me finished” I decided to do just that. So after breakfast on Saturday morning I:

• Enjoyed a little crochet – taught myself how to make an alligator stitch flower
• Hoovered
• Mopped the floors
• Put on two loads of washing
• Dusted
• Rediscovered my desk that was hidden under a mountain of paper
• Soaked in a hot bath full of bubbles

I then did a little writing. Well I say a little what I actually did was complete one story I’d sketched out a month or so earlier and had started to write. Then feeling guilty that I’d procrastinated so much in the morning and most of the afternoon I then sketched out a second story then wrote the entire thing. Both are now sitting with the other stories that will become my latest book.

On the Sunday I got up and walked the dog (typically my first job every Sunday), sat in front of the computer and achieved… absolutely nothing. I had the story in my head but try as I might I just couldn’t get it to form. Perhaps it was because I knew this was the last story I had to write for my new collection. However in hindsight I think it was because I didn’t procrastinate first. I didn’t give my writing muscle time to warm up to the idea that it was going to be used. I didn’t allow my subconscious enough time to resolve the plot holes before I sat down. I didn’t allow myself enough time to ‘get in the zone.’ So I’ve decided next time I have a day of being a ‘proper’ writer I’ll start with a little procrastination first, it’s much more productive.