I noticed that my urge to write is like a faucet with a constant flow. Whether it’s the blog, an assignment or an article, I have to write constantly.
Sometimes I blog a few times a day and there are also gaps of days in my blogging routine. I still write though. Only not here. And my energy is redirected towards something else. It’s funny, but at the end of the day I don’t feel like writing if I spent hours editing, writing or simply gathering information.
It’s one of those days. I find myself in front of the computer, I have my fingers spread on the keyboard and my eyes focused on the screen, still I have no desire in sharing any thought.
I wanted to put this feeling of creative exhaustion into words, so I could come back to the text from time to time.
I can’t help wondering… I remember a teacher telling me during high school: “You have to write daily, writing must come natural eventually, it shouldn’t be an effort. Write for hours every day”. And I did. After 5 months, I was able to write a good short story in an hour. And still have ideas for two more.
The stories I have to write now are more and more complicated. How do other people do it? And I’m not talking about simple journalistic tasks like writing a short newspiece, but real stories, at least a page long, with characters, atmosphere, solid background information. The kind Stephen Glass wrote 😀 only true ones!
I sometimes wonder if the path I’ll choose will be journalism. Or will I end up “PR”-ing? Or will I serve beer in my own bar? Or will a teach? Could I do all of the above? 🙂
Well, for now, I like the feeling of exhaustion that journalism leaves me with. I’ll go enjoy it.
9 Comments
Neo
25/07/2006 at 1:23 AMI think you can achieve anything (from the above list anyway 🙂 ) if you set your mind to it. So I don’t think you should worry about serving beer (unless it’s in your bar and you do it for your friends 😀 )
If it’s anything I have leaned in the past few years, is that even if you like something so much that you can do it for hours at a time without even noticing how time files by, you eventually need to take a step back and relax, do something else for a change. This enables you to gain perspective on the things that you do, to come up with fresh ideas and it also makes you appreciate them more.
I’m not a journalist and I don’t write, so I can’t say if this applies to you, but for me, event if I sit in front of the computer for a lot more then 8 hours a day, sometimes I would like to be somewhere else with no computer in sight. Of course, this doesn’t last to much 🙂
ago
25/07/2006 at 1:37 AMand don’t you wanna write short stories or smth?
stingo
25/07/2006 at 2:02 AMWell, this short story of you wondering what it takes to be a good writer looks pretty well written to me.
(I know! Stingo commenting on a positive note! I must be delirious or something.)
Vivi’s developer blog » Blog Archive » The little things
25/07/2006 at 8:00 AM[…] Daca n-am locui in orase diferite, as zice ca o fi ceva in aer. Nici eu, nici Andreea n-am mai scris de la o vreme atat de des sau atat de mult. Am fost prea ocupat poate. […]
Cristian
25/07/2006 at 12:19 PMThese are the right questions, A. Keep writing. Admirable (American) journalists have been telling me for the past couple of years that great spontaneous writing emerges around the fifth or sixth draft. Journalism is a huge umbrella and it goes from the police brief to the non-fiction novel. Please stick with it. This country has not seen much of it.
Just keep your eyes open, keep reporting and rewrite. Yes, write. But even more importantly, re-write. That’s why the best writers labor over simple sentences–because great writing is not the stuff of sudden inspiration–it’s the agony of continuously polishing your drafts. Keep going.
andressa
25/07/2006 at 1:10 PMTrue, Cristian. I have learned in my modest experience that the best works are the ones rewritten for three or four times. Rarely does someone have sudden insipration – it happens, but that’s not being a journalist is all about. I agree.
Maybe someday I’ll post my favourite short story I’ve written. It’s been rewritten three times. It’s almost very good 🙂
name (required)
25/07/2006 at 5:22 PMpls blog in romanian… its our language and we love it…
magda
25/07/2006 at 6:05 PMdaca iti deschizi bar in Leu ai face fericite generatii de electronisti for years to come. Si poate mai si agati cativa ;)cu cateva beri la bord, si cel mai inchistat tocilar devine mai expansiv…or so i’ve heard ;;)
Neo
25/07/2006 at 11:04 PMYou know what they say: three times is a charm