Guilty as charged

My latest assignment;

Write a story in which relief is clouded by guilt.

... no problem, I've got a million of them.

Perhaps I shouldn't admit to it, but almost my entire youth was a enshrouded with the surly suffocation of guilt. Nothing major, just saying no - to absolutely anything was enough to suck the air out of my lungs and uncork the dam - some days. Still time and age has allowed the cloud to dissipate somewhat. It's a relief, which of course I still feel slightly guilty about.

... incidentally, the photo is supposed to represent the enshrouding guilt? Sorry, it was the best I could come up with!

A bad day's work is a lot better than no day's work at all. Philip Pullman

Exercising away my writing

Procrastination can be a tricky customer. On times it can sneak in undetected and steal away my time - and I barely even notice until suddenly the clock strikes bedtime.

I know exercise is supposed to be a beneficial pursuit, but those 30 minutes can quickly become an hour when bookended with warm ups and cooling down. And for me life doesn't begin ‘til 7.00pm - when the little man is safely tucked up in bed.
It’s in those few precious hours that I have to cram my entire writing day – excepting a few notes I’ve managed to scribble throughout the day.

Ultimately I suppose being fit and healthy is as important to being a good writer as having the time in which to write. But there’s no doubt in my mind that exercise is just another form of stealth procrastination.

In a Frenzy

It’s just over a week since Script Frenzy began, and already I can feel my script morphing into a novel.

I decided to take up the challenge because I’ve never written a script before - so why not? And as everyone is so quick to tell you how few writers make it big, or even earn a decent living from writing – I decided diversity must be the key.

Unfortunately, so far I’ve managed just a handful of pages - still, there’s 22 days left and I’m feeling very enthusiastic and inspired about my subject matter. But there’s no denying it – my script seems to be heading like word seeking missile toward novel territory.

Even so, as an Apprentice Writer, all practice is good practice - so that’s what I shall do!

Beginning

Oh, if only it were as easy to start as it is to to press that final euphoric full stop.