Can the Weary Writer Write? via Julia Kay

Today we welcome Julia Kay to the blog. Julia is a talented writer and a wonderful friend.

I met Julia several years ago through our local ACFW chapter, and since then, we’ve shared many wonderful adventures. Julia writes women’s fiction and she is a 2016 ACFW Genesis semi-finalist.

So happy to have you, Julia! You grab the mugs and I’ll pour the coffee. 

Gather ’round, all.

Today’s topic: the weary writer. Let’s chat!

 

My neglected to-do list stares at me, a visceral reminder of all the things I should do—like sort through the junk box sitting on the closet floor. Like take the bag of old clothes to the local ministry.

I should bathe the dogs.

Sweep the floors.

I should plant the tulips I bought yesterday.

Too many “I shoulds.”

Yet, I sit at my desk and fix my eyes on the computer screen.

I need to use this segment of time well—this time set-aside for one purpose. To write.

Then the dryer buzzes. Clothes need to be folded. Right. Now.

The phone rings. Do I ignore it? Of course not! It might be important. Except it’s not.

As I disconnect from the telemarketer, I open the front door to let the exterminator in and we have a lengthy discussion about ladybugs and spiders.

Finally, I sit at my desk again and open up a work-in-progress.

Now I’m ready to dive in.

Except the characters went AWOL last week. I’m afraid they might not ever return. And the setting of that story seems so far away, I’m not confident that my creative, writerly GPS will locate it again.

So, I change my mind.

With fingers poised above the keyboard, I’m eager to begin an article that’s due at the end of the month, but I can’t seem to grab hold of anything.

Not because there isn’t anything there, but because there’s too much.

Too many thoughts. Too many emotions. Too many topics to unpack.

Too many stories to tell. Too many distractions.

Is this writer’s block?

I always thought writer’s block meant the writer couldn’t find any fresh material or a new storyline. I thought it meant that the well had gone dry. (Click-to-Tweet)

And maybe it does. On some days. With some writers.

Today I’m not sure.

Because the ideas are plentiful. The desire to write is alive and well, but the stressors of life have muddied the water and I can’t see clearly. I can’t formulate the words into sentences.

It’s as if I’ve misplaced the key to that particular room in the ivory tower where words are spun together. As if the demands of everyday living have rubbed me so utterly raw, have wrung me out so completely that I find myself standing in front of my mind’s writing room with no strength to knock.

I face overwhelming waves in an ocean of words that can’t find a shore.

Maybe writer’s block is simply a way of saying, “I’m tired.”

Or perhaps I’m experiencing weary writer’s syndrome?

Wait. Is that even a thing?

What’s a writer to do when the pen weighs too much?

Can the weary write?

Yes!

But how?

On this particular morning of weariness, I read some poetry.

I listen to music.

I live life.

I plant those tulips.

I walk in the park.

I feed the ducks.

I cry as I write the first draft of the article that’s due.

Wow. It’s messy.

So messy, I worry the tears will cause water damage to my computer.

However, this isn’t the only time I’ve experienced this dilemma.

In fact, I want to let you in on a little secret. This blog started with these words—I don’t know what to write.

Then I attended a funeral to celebrate the life of a man I’ve never met, to sit beside people who mourned his loss—people who were woven into the fabric of my life.

As I listened to the story of his life from loved ones, I learned that this deceased man had a rough start in life but he never gave up. (Click-to-Tweet)

He worked hard.

He loved completely.

He fished.

He cared enough about others to make a difference.

His funeral helped me realize that this principle is the same with writers.

The beginning might be rough, but we must not give up. Especially when we are weary.

Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11: 28 KJV)

And it’s in that resting place, because we have been weary from living this grand adventure called life, that we find the words to write.

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AUTHOR BIO

Julia Kay is a contributing author to a local newspaper column, an alumna of Southwest Baptist University and president of Exodus Ministry, a local non-profit in the Ozarks area. She is a member of ACFW, a 2016 ACFW Genesis semi-finalist, and an aspiring women’s fiction novelist.

 

 

PLEASE SHARE

Writer, are you weary and battle-worn? I know the feeling. Here’s a secret and a pick-me-up!

(Click-to-Tweet)

 

How can the words possibly come when we’re too exhausted to write? This author shares her secret.

(Click-to-Tweet)

 

 

ENCOURAGEMENT

  Chasing Dreams via Kimberly Rose Johnson

What made this author keep writing despite closed doors and private dreams.

 

Why I Still Write When Bad Things Happen

Why writing soothes this writer’s soul when tragic news unfolds.

 

 

Original Image Credit: Kaitlyn Baker on Unsplash

Author Image via Julia Kay

 

Can you relate to weary writer syndrome?

How do you work through it?

What are your best tips for dealing with work-related exhaustion?

 

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Ooh, I’m loving these guest-blogs! I hope you are, too.

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Until next week, my friend!

Much Love and Many Blessings,