Well, it's been one of those weeks again. I'm not going to bore you with the details but, suffice to say, my writing didn't go as well as I had planned, or hoped. On saying that, I did manage to complete a short story for a competition and I finally managed to finish an edit of my erotic anthology, so I suppose it wasn't a complete disaster.
Of course, there was Stan the Cat, who seems to illuminate our lives whenever he strolls in. This is particularly the case with his antics or, more to the point, the gifts he continually brings for us. This week, we have had a stone and, yesterday, I got up and discovered that he had delivered a "Happy Retirement" balloon for us. It was flat, but still rather fetching in pink, with ribbons attached.
Now, either Stan knows something that we don't - big lottery win....oh my God I haven't checked the numbers yet, or perhaps he is trying to pass on another message after the week I've had.
This brings me nicely round to my weekly writing tie in....
What are your views on giving up? Have you ever thought about putting your pen down? If so, why?
In the earlier days, the rejection letters would always send me scurrying for chocolate and my arm chair, where I would then pull my writing, myself and my confidence to shreds.
These days, I try to be more objective. Sure, some rejections hurt more than others, especially if it's of a piece of writing that you're particularly fond. However, over the years I have learned to be thick skinned. I have "manned up" as the saying goes.
One of the main things I have now accepted, is that writing is subjective. One person might hate yoour work, another might love it, so it's important that you brush off that rejection and get your work back out there. This is an important coping mechanism for rejections. Of course, I have also learned to take a fresh look at the rejected piece and to see if it can be improved too.
These days I never, ever, think that I should put my pen down and give it up. Writing is in my blood. If I ever stopped, it would be like slitting an artery and slowly, painfully bleeding out. Even on bad days, like this week, I still get immense satisfaction from sitting at my desk with a notebook and pen. Writing soothes, it heals. It is cathartic. It even acts as an escape route, where I can immerse myself in the many worlds of my characters and forget about me for a while.
What do you think? How do you feel about your writing and retirement?
I'm hoping that Stan might bring me a new balloon next week- perhaps a "Happy Writing" one. What do you think?
And on that note, all being well, next week I will have a sneak preview of my latest romantic e-book that I'm hoping will be out by the end of the year.
Happy writing all!
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