Sanity is
defined differently for each individual. At times, all rational thought goes
right out the window when I’m working on a deadline. It’s not sane for me to
yell at my family to leave me alone. Nor is it smart to fore-go all other
obligations. How do I meet that deadline and keep some sense of mental
stability? It’s not easy.
Setting aside
time is important, but what’s more vital is quiet,
uninterrupted time. Someone will always need something, an urgent matter will
always come up. If no one (real person) is bleeding, then I must keep writing.
The first thing
I tell my family is I’m on a deadline and that I cannot be interrupted. They
respect that. Then I go to my studio out back and close the door. It’s a
blessed thing to shut everything and everyone out. When I shut that door, the
world becomes mine . . . well, it actually turns out to be my characters’, but
that’s what I want.
Now I have my
calm space and everyone has been instructed. The problem then is my brain won’t
shut off. It seems like the looming deadline recalls to mind all the
obligations I have. Fine. That’s okay. They just become my characters’ problems
to deal with. Sometimes, that works; other times, not so much. When the
characters cannot deal with a situation similar to mine, I just create more
harrowing ones for them, thus taking my mind off of what I still need to do
after I’ve met my deadline.
Immersion is
good. When I’m able to block out outside influences, I can submerge my psyche
into the story at hand. Sometimes (most times), it’s a matter of rewriting and
editing that has me walking closest to the missed deadline.
I think the most
important thing for me to do is to try and remember that if a deadline is
missed, it’s not the end of the world. The earth will still rotate and others
will keep breathing and smiling, even amidst my quiet terror. Which, by the
way, if I miss a deadline, my panic happens to be very vocal!
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