Getting up again

There’s a proverb that goes “Fall down seven times, get up eight times”.  I’ve fallen “off” the daily writing habit.  Again.  It’s been over a month since I was writing daily, so I’m going to dust myself off and start the habit again.

I know why I fell off.  Usually when I complete a first draft of a piece, I take a break.  Unfortunately, that break usually becomes extended.  When I finished writing my play Laund-o-mat at the End of the World, I didn’t write for almost a year.  I didn’t even write in my journal.  I really don’t know why that was, but the same thing has happened after all the other plays that I’ve written.

I finished the first draft of my fifth play just before I broke my daily writing habit.  The good news is that period of non-writing seems to be shrinking with each new work.  Maybe it’s a psychic recovery period.  Maybe I’m just lazy and need to catch up on my tv watching.   Whatever it is, I don’t like it.

At least this time, I kept up with some writerly pursuits.  I took part in a World Theatre Day celebration and wrote a mini-adaption as part of an exercise with my writing group.   I had a reading of my newest play.  I saw some high school kids perform Laund-o-mat as part of the Sears Festival (they won their division and are moving on to the Regionals) -- they did a great job, by the way.  I submitted my play Mulling Kilt Attire for dramaturgy at Pat the Dog.  I’ve entered a couple of contests.  I went to a couple of drop-ins at the Predella Open Studio.  I saw Linda Griffiths speak about playwriting.  I went to a masterclass with Judith Thompson.  Whew!

So, even though I haven’t been doing my daily pages, I can honestly say that I have been still busy with my  playwriting.  But, let’s face it: to be a writer, you have to write.  So, I’m renewing my daily writing habit.  I’m getting up, after falling down.

I kind of feel like I’m back to where I was at the beginning of January.  I’ve also put back that weight that I had lost.  Oh well.  Keep moving forward, right? 

As part of this do over, I will commit to writing at least one blog a week.  I may end up writing more, but the goal is to do at least one per week.  That way, I will have at least 52 blog entries next year at this time.  And hopefully another play or two.  ;-)