It is fair – and frustrating – to say that I can go long periods without writing.

I finish a project – or sometimes I don’t, my interests fades – and find the lure of the pen dissipates. Not through lack of ideas, it is rare that I don’t have a scene, character or dialogue circulating in my brain at least once a day. Sometimes these are new ideas, sometimes a return to old friends. 

It may be that I hit the ‘I don’t know what to do’ indecisive wall. “Which story do I work on next? What should the character do now? How do they gat from A to B?” It may be laziness, procrastination, or easily distraction. Occasionally it is other demands on my time get in the way – though as it doesn’t take long to write a practice descriptive sentence this isn’t much of an excuse. (Currently, it is the need to study for a Professional Certificate, reading dry legal and contractual documents that drain my creative juices.)

However, it doesn’t really matter. Writing is currently a hobby, not a career. I’m not disappointing any readers, editors or agents. I’m not working to deadlines. I’m writing for me, to get the words out of my head, to create worlds, friends and adventures I can return to. 

That’s not to say that having deadlines and supportive pressure from an agent/ editor/ writing partner wouldn’t be a bad thing. I have got several degrees under my belt (not to brag…), which have all required submission of written assignments by deadlines proving that this is achievable. Some of my ideas I like to think would be enjoyed by a wider readership. (Indeed I have had some very positive feedback on my short stories, which have feed into my short story collection Worlds Apart) .

So that’s where I am at the moment, and I’m not worrying about it. My motivation and writing ebbs and flows. I’ll enjoy writing when I do it, and enjoy the scenery in my head even if that is where it stays. 

I cannot also avoid the irony in writing this post. I have had the concept rumbling round my brain for some -writing free – months. Now I am getting back into a writing phase, with new blog posts and getting ideas from my brain onto paper.