Getting the Road Paved: What May Stop Your Writing

On Monday we're getting our road slurry sealed. If any of you have ever had that done, you'll know it is a total inconvenience. From 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. we are asked, no commanded, to move our cars off the street. If we don't, they will come knocking on our door. If we're not home the police will feel the need to move our vehicles themselves. And you know what that means.



Photo by: warrenski, courtesy of Flickr

No sprinklers on the day of slurry either. If your lawn needs to be watered, too bad, you'll have to wait a day. And if it rains? Well, they'll just pick a different day for you to be inconvenienced.

It just so happens that a friend of mine, who has never been to my new home, and who will be meeting me at my place for lunch, will have a tough time getting to it. Not only does she have to park her car on a different street, she has to walk down the street to get to my house.

Since getting the notice taped to my door, (yesterday) I have thought some about other inconveniences I have dealt with this week. Getting sick with the flu, and having to run to the store for a last-minute purchase, to name a couple.

No one likes to be inconvenienced.

Especially writers.

Take, for example, a writer who has almost finished with the first draft of her book, and then suddenly, can't find it located on the computer. A writer that feels that it's not fair to have to wait 8 years to have her first bit of writing published. A writer who must wait 3-6 months for an acceptance or rejection letter. Children that make noise that the writer must work around. The list could go on and on...

And it does. I am the writer mentioned above. All of these things and more have occurred in my life, and, like getting slurry on a road, may cause me to just give up. But I haven't.

Barriers for you may include:

I have a full-time job and don't have time to write.
I keep getting rejection letters. I need to make a sale!

Get my drift?

Photo by: Dino ahmad ali, courtesy of Flickr

There are many things that may stop us from writing. And like an old road that is due for some slurry, we may feel as if all we can do is stand by and let life happen.

Let life happen?

I'll have you know, that my friend and I are still going out to eat.