Please welcome Ellen Cardona, author of
Brownie Fix (read my review
here)
Writer’s Procrastination
Some people think that writers just write a steady stream of words, and it turns into a novel. That doesn’t happen to me, not even on a good day. If I’m going to jump into a manuscript or edit for a long period of time and be committed to it, the first thing I do is procrastinate. I’ll do it for a couple of weeks that turns into a month until I just can’t stand the pressure of it anymore and have to start writing.
Here’s a recent day when I procrastinated. Of course, my normal procrastination schedule was thrown off because my kids have started summer break:
Wake up at 4:30: Write. No way. I go out with my running buddies to burn off the guilt that I’m not writing.
7:00-8:00: Eat breakfast and watch Buffy The Vampire Slayer because the kids are on summer break and are asleep. Maybe Buffy will give me inspiration?
8-9:30: pull up manuscript that needs editing and stare at it. Check emails and Facebook and realize that I’m exhausted because I got up at 4:30 to go run. Sleep.
10:00-11:00: pick up house, clean it, stare at manuscript, check and answer emails, do a blog post to release the guilt that I’m not working on my manuscript. Get one child ready for swim lessons and yell at teenager to get up from bed.
12:00-1:00: Go to Power Yoga to release more guilt and pressure from not doing what I’m supposed to be doing.
1:00-2:30: Get changed, dressed, hair and make-up done so that I’ll feel better so that I can write.
2:30-3:30: Realize I can’t write because I have to get kids from summer activities or I’ll usually tell them to go find something to do, even though I’m not doing what I’m supposed to be doing.
3:30-4:30: Stare at computer.
5:00-9:00: Chauffeur duties for kids’ activities and will bring laptop to edit manuscript but spend time gossiping and completely zoning out.
9:00-11:00: Spend time with the family and husband.
Ok. This is a slight exaggeration, and all my days are not like this one. Sometimes, I substitute brownies for yoga, and I don’t get up at 4:30 every morning. I actually do have a part-time teaching job, and sometimes my family will eat dinner at the table.
This sounds absolutely nuts, but it’s normal for me. No wonder people think writers are crazy. Hmm. That manuscript is still waiting . . . I’ll think I’ll make some brownies.
Author Bio:
Ellen Cardona wrote Brownie Fix to help deal with the postpartum depression she experienced after one of her pregnancies. Through her writing, she found that postpartum depression was real but conquerable, especially when one has the help of some dark chocolate and even darker humor.
When Ellen is not writing, she teaches literature to college freshmen and attempts to help them understand the writing process, though they think she’s crazy because of her love for literature and writing.
Ellen graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas with a PhD in Humanities with a specialization in Literature. Even though she has published several academic works on Ezra Pound, she could not ignore her true passion as a fiction writer.
