Today
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A real problem sometimes
Head full to capacity.
This might sound like belly-aching - especially to authors who are struggling for ideas (and I apologise for this blog) but multiple projects can be a real problem for me sometimes.
As an author you have to have plenty of ideas to write that novel or short story. And if I just 'dried up' that would be devastating. That scenario scares the hell out of me. But saying that, too many ideas popping up at the same time are a real headache too. A nice problem to have, you would think wouldn't you?
If I'm in the middle of a project, I need to be fully focused. Sometimes though, another idea or two will leak into my head. That's fine. I would normally jot down the details and continue with what I'm doing. But there's nothing worse for me than working on a book, and the other ideas start nagging, and pulling in the background. Its hard to shake off, and when it gets to that stage, concentration goes out-the-window, which slows the whole process down. It can quickly ground to a halt and leave you a blubbering mess.
My solution for this was to leave what I'm working on and take up the new project. But if this continues to happen as I'm working on the next idea, and another idea comes along - what do I do then? Its like swimming against the tide.
When it gets to five or six ideas bouncing around - that's when it becomes a really serious issue. Which one do you work on? It got to the stage with me, where I was drowning in ideas - head so swamped, that I didn't know where to turn. Ok, so what's the answer? Different authors deal with this in different ways.
You've got to slow things down.
Take your foot off the accelerator, kick back and relax. Go for a walk. Make yourself a cup of coffee or tea. Think of something else for a while. If I'm honest, its the walk that does it for me. I let the cool air wash over my face, listen to the traffic, or the birds - take long, deep breaths. Then, when I'm ready... I go back, but only when I'm ready!
Take one idea at a time and see it through to the end no matter how long it takes to finish, simple really. I've learned that the other projects will always be there to fall back on (if there's any life in them) some ideas will never come to fruition and were never meant to be.
I don't know if this has helped anyone? Its just my experience.