Never Bored

One of the great joys of being prolific is you aren't going to get bored writing. Really. First, you generally write so quickly that the story flies and never rests. But even if you take it slower, or hit a bad spot, you won't get bored because there are always other projects to work on.

It's sometimes a temptation to spread your imagination out too far and to too many projects at once. I try to give myself one 'serious' project I have to work on (say 1000 words each day) and then permission to work on anything else that appeals to me.

Right now the 'serious' project is not A Plague of Rats (the last snippet), though it probably will be soon. The current serious work is (again) Ada Nish Pura, a novel that is about to go back out in submission. I'm very happy with the current read/edit and I'm one third of the way through. I'll be done by the end of next week, and off it will go.

I know many people find it difficult to work on more than one project at a time, but I also know that quite a few people with only one project get bored with it, stop working on it for a while... and stop working altogether, on any project. The one is sitting there, mocking them, and they can't push past it to work on anything else. Having a second, not as serious, project might be just the thing needed.

It might be that a second writing project isn't what you need. Maybe you need just a second artistic challenge of some sort. I have a few of those as well -- photography or graphic art. Of course, if I could make house cleaning into an artistic challenge I'd have it made. I should work on that, right?

I would like more time, to be honest. I would like the time to do all the writing I want, and all the art stuff as well. I don't mind working on FM and Vision things, but quite there are days when I think I could just close it all down and lock myself into my office and play with all the fun toys instead.


Below is a snippet... not of A Plague of Rats or Ada Nish Pura, but rather the opening to the next section of the Sangre story, which will be posted on May 1. I thought I'd give you a little preview!

One

"I think we're going down," Apache said with a shrug.

Baby looked out the window of the small, two-seater plane as one of the propellers stopped. An endless canopy of African jungle stretched out as far as she could see.

"Well this is terrific," Baby said.

The right engine sputtered again and Apache pulled hard at the controls, gaining them a few more feet.

"Stop going up, you fool." Baby jabbed at her sister, as though Apache wasn't paying attention. "It only means we'll have farther to fall."

"Stop that," Apache ordered. She pulled up again, despite Baby's sound of exasperation. Or maybe because of it. Apache often reacted that way to her younger sister. "Check the radio again."

Baby leaned forward and played with buttons. "Open Channel D. UNCLE, are you there? Kirk to Spock -- beam us up, you fool!" She shook her head and leaned back again. "Dead as a Dalek."

"Don't go weird on me now."

"Go weird? This is no time for humor. Aren't we getting lower?"

"Yes. Look for an airport."

Baby leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. After a moment's calm, she took hold of the co-pilot's controls and set about helping her sister again.

"Any idea where we are, Apache?"

"Certainly. We're lost over the jungles of Africa." Both engines sputtered and died, leaving them -- for a very short time -- gliding. "Hell. Now it's going to be lost in the jungles of Africa."

"You are such a help. And a pillar of optimism, too."

"Comes from working with you for too long."

"I doubt that's something either of us will have to worry about much longer."