You know what they say about watched pots? Fuck that. My creativity has been on a slow simmer (if that) for months now and I'm taking charge.

I'm not going to sit around and wait for things to happen anymore. Sure, there are times when you have to let stories sit and brew (or ferment, as the case may be). And then there are times when you have to give the Muse a jolt by giving him or her a swift kick. Today, my friends, is the day for the latter.

I fear I've been slave to my Muse for a little too long. Words aren't coming? I've been happy to let them sit and hope they boil. Still not brewing after a few days? A few more won't hurt. That, my friends, is how you fall off the writing wagon.

Well, too bad. It's time to get on with things because I have become the Me that I hate. The Me that talks a lot about writing but isn't doing any actual writing. And that doesn't make me a writer. So, I've made a schedule of my WIPS.

• 3 stories that I would like to finish in the next month, as deadlines are looming
• 2 more that I fell back in love with and can't wait to get to
• a further 9 that are in various stages of completion
• and there's still that pesky half-finished novel…

This non-writing is the reason I've dropped off the blogging/tweeting/interacting radar – nothing important to talk about! So although I may still be MIA for a while, I will be away doing – devoting my time back where it belongs (writing) and also taking care of my writer self (aka doing The Artist's Way, taking myself on some artist dates, etc.).
Which begins with a trip to see the King Tut exhibit at the AGO. Cannot wait!

So that's how I intend to make things happen. Watched pots never boil? They can if you light a fire under 'em.

How do you regroup when you fall off the writing bandwagon?

Photo by Ryan Lindh

We all have those moments when we doubt ourselves, get in a rut or just generally lose motivation.

I seem to go through phases where I am super-productive, and then fall victim to one, if not all of these things. Other than a few sporadic editing sessions and some frenzied writing by the seat of my pants (which is something I never do), I'm still in that rut.

But the good news is I have finally gotten to the point where I am sick of the rut and ready to kick some butt!
So, I am doing what I often hear is what NOT to do. I'm going to toot my own horn! I'm jumping on my own bandwagon. In fact, I'll jump into the driver's seat and DRIVE the damned bandwagon if I have to!

I know I can get wordy when I write. But that just means I sometimes get lost in what I'm writing and can't help but yammer on about it until my pen runs dry. And while I love getting the words down, what I love even more is polishing and rearranging and adding layers of tone and suspense and skin-twinging, spine-tingling creepiness.

I don't have a million stories published. But I have 1 (with a 2nd & 3rd on the way), along with what seems like a billion ideas and snippets and works in various stages of progress that will some day see the light of day. I have written just over 90,000 words on my first novel (editing is another story…), 25,000 words scribbled on a short story collection, and when I see all of these stories lined up – finished or near-completed – I realize that half the fun of writing is in the journey, not the destination. But I still won't quit taking steps to get there, either.

I realize that I have an amazing group of writer-friends who constantly amaze me with their talent and their support. Even if they don't realize it, their constant efforts towards their own goals keeps me on my toes and inspires me to keep evolving and growing.

I realize that I am good enough whether I have a good writing day or not; that I don't need to compare my success to the success of others; that I am on my own track and as long as I keep striving for what I want, I RULE!

So, there. Incredibly self-indulgent blog post over. We all need a little pep talk now and then. What's yours?

I've fallen off the wagon in many respects here, dear readers.

I'm still freelancing, but everything else has suffered. I did manage to open up a few of my stories this past week. But I quickly felt lost, completely taken out of the flow of words and not inspired at all.

Whether the stories are just not holding my attention or I just feel like I'm staring at a big chunk of clay that needs some serious slicing and shaping (and punching), I seem to have hit a slump that I don't see any way out of yet.

So, what do I do? Use it. I've got a few articles on writer's block coming up this week (if you can't beat 'em, join 'em, right?).

I'm trying to get some of my week's work done today so I can sit my butt at my writing desk all week and make some progress. Because there is nothing worse than feeling like everything you've written sucks and you will never have a good idea again.

Which brings me to my favorite article this week. It actually comes from last week – Develop a story idea in five minutes.

Sometimes, after working all day, I end up feeling as though it's "too late" to dive into writing. I see this as sort of a self-defeating mindset, as you have all heard my talk of being an insomniac (and there really isn't any right or wrong hour of the day to write). Why I do this to myself, I don't know. Laziness, fear of suckage, what have you. But I figure I should take my own advice, and let this method of quick writing sprints get me back into the flow of writing.

So, how do you beat writer's block? How do you conquer that nagging voice in your head that tells you that you are no good? What's the longest you've gone without writing anything new?

I do know one thing that can only help – chocolate. Email me if you need my mailing address.

If you missed 'em, my other writing articles this week include a few on travel writing (both from home and abroad), a boot camp for writers who need a little discipline (like me) and one on how using your unique writer's voice can translate into sweet book sales.

I sort of fell off the wagon in terms of keeping up with these weekly recaps. Frankly, it's probably not the most interesting post for anyone to read, is it? A list of articles? So, I'm just going to post my favorites and point you to the columns themselves if you missed any of the others.

Toronto Writing Examiner

Although I do have to try to do as many of my articles as possible with a Toronto-specific focus, my favorite article this week was more generic, but I really loved writing it. 

As writers, I think we can all use a little help from time to time, and for some of us, it's also fascinating to read about the processes of others. So, my piece this week on brainstorming techniques may have been my most popular one so far, but I also hope it will be beneficial to other writers who need some tips to refresh their writing process.

Toronto Fashion Arts Examiner

Although I've only just started writing the Fashion Arts column, I really like this piece. It was great to get some feedback from Adriana, who is running The Bazaar of the Bizarre, and it was also nice to put my print journalism background to good use!  I really enjoyed the interview process and I plan to do longer interviews of local indie designers in the near future.

Adriana also has a totally cool, modern-yet-futuristic line of industrial-inspired clothing that I lovelovelove, so I was glad to be able to get to know her a bit better.

The Challenge of Freelancing

Now that I'm working on two columns, I really need to be more organized than ever. I'm still juggling the columns with all my other work, and still haven't found the perfect mix of work and play (my fiction writing).

But I'm determined to get things sorted – whether I try to do a bit of everything everyday, or set certain tasks for specific days of the week. Because, as my fellow writers know. strange things sometimes happen when it's all work and no play…

See, that's the problem with blogs. You put 'em out there and then they come back to haunt you.

Wasn't it just last week that I went on about how we need to stick to our guns and do the 'responsible thing' by working on the task at hand, no matter how feverishly our Muse whispers story ideas into our ears late at night?

Well, I admit it. I caved. My Muse planted the seed of a story in my mind and now, I've dropped my other WIPs like they are hot potatoes.

If there were a scarlet letter for falling prey to literary whimsy, I'd be sewing it onto my sweater as we speak.

But then again, who am I to ignore my Muse? I've done it before and she paid me back by propping her feet up on the table for a long….long….long while without passing on any of her pearls of wisdom.

It's official, folks. I'm on a short leash.

My Current WIPs (works-in-progress)

- WIPs 1, 2 & 3: I've made no progress on these, I'm ashamed to say.Still stuck on 1; still waiting to hear if 2 has been accepted; 3 is stalled

- WIP #4: I know, I can't believe I've got these 4 stories on the go. It kind of annoys me that I'm working on so many stories at once. Maybe the Muse will award me for my obedience by allowing me to make quick work of this idea while it's still fresh in my mind. Because it's actually pulling at me (like most story ideas do…in the beginning, at least). Let's just hope this one doesn't end up a stalled project like the ones above

If you’re a writer participating in WIP Wednesday, post a link to your blog in the comments!

Fellow WIP Wednesday participants:

• KV Taylor – WIP Wednesday Indulges in Worldbuilding
• Aaron Polson – WIP Wednesday: I Can't Handle the Truth
• Jeremy Kelly – WIP Wednesday: The Gift Horse

Ah, the Muse. Sometimes she comes to us in the craziest of circumstances. Other times,we wonder if she'll ever make herself known at all. But one thing is certain – life with a Muse is always an adventure.

WIP #1 (for lack of a better title since I haven't thought of one yet)is one of the pieces to come out of my NaNo'09 short story collection project. At the time, I was a dutiful little NaNo soldier. I put my pen to paper, kept my head down and wrote.

The good news? Now I have the luxury of stepping back to take a look at the bigger picture. The bad news? I've looked at the bigger picture and it needs some tweaking.

'Tweaking' is putting it mildly, to tell you the truth. I think I need to do the grand-daddy of all revamps and switch POV characters.

Yeah…you heard me right. I said it. I'm going to axe my leading lady and make her a man.

Know how I know it's the right move? I feel nauseous. I'm nervous about it. I'm afraid of falling flat on my face. I'm afraid of doing all that work only to realize I was right the first time around.

You might think I'm a masochist but I enjoy the fear. Because it shows that I'm willing to take a chance. The fear excites me. Bring it on.

See, the Muse knows how to tempt us writers. She knows which buttons to push, and when to push them. And right now, she's got me wrapped around her little finger.

I'll let you know how it goes.

As for you – what do you do when you find yourself in this situation? Do you hold back or face your fears? What little tricks does your Muse do to torment – and titillate – you? And how do you one-up her?

It seems I'm not the only one struggling with writing what I want versus what I should be writing.

Sure – you'd think that not having enough ideas would be the worst case scenario for any writer. But I think that it's the more manic, all-the-voices-shouting-at-once dilemma that is much more maddening.        

Sometimes it feels as though our ideas are The Other Man (or Woman, as the case may be) and we find ourselves fantasizing about all those as-of-yet unwritten worlds that we long to get lost in, if only we had the time.        

But between life and work, often we are left to wax romantic for our unrequited, not-yet-told tales.        

Sure, sometimes we should allow ourselves to be the dreamy teenagers to our ideas.      

But if we're ever going to make any progress at all, sometimes we do have to be adults about it and get down to business.

My Current WIPs:

• WIP #1: Okay – I'm stuck. I've printed out a hard copy, because sometimes it's easier to see where it isn't working on the page rather than the screen. Hoping to get this one finished in the next week or two
• WIP #2: Finally got a little feedback on where the story might not be working (thanks Ryan!) so I'll work on this when WIP #1 is too maddening. Hopefully it won't require too much shredding
• WIP #3: that piece for#fridayflash that I mentioned on Monday. Jasper TX is on repeat…(meaning…still polishing it up)

• Aaron Polson – WIP Wednesday: Monsters Everywhere
• Barry Napier – Recovery
• KV Taylor – WIP Wednesday Isn't Groundbreaking
• Mercedes Yardley – Kill Those Darlings DEAD, Baby. WIP Wednesday

#writerwednesday Book Tour
Fellow writer W.J. Howard has started promoting the work of other writers with her #writerwednesday book tour. This is a fantastic idea, and a great way to network! Wendy's looking for a few good writerly links (related to books, writers, writing, literary blog tours and in Horror, Fantasy, Paranormal, Sci-Fi and Comedy genres) – so head over to her site and spread the love!

If you've got a great link to share, book news to announce, or anything else book/writing related, get in touch. We'll talk, you know, no big whoop

As I've mentioned countless times before, music is a big part of my writing life.

Somehow the melodies seem to unlock certain parts of my brain that are at slumber or at the very least stubbornly hiding themselves and making me dig and grasp for every single word.

But when I discovered this track from Jasper TX, and I listened to it for the first time on a sleepless night when my insomnia was keeping me awake doing nothing in particular, for whatever reason an image immediately came to mind and I began scribbling furiously.

Inspired by both the music and the fact that I had been planning on doing an article on Virginia Woolf (it would have been her birthday yesterday), it's a moody piece that I started working on in bits and pieces last week. But it isn't finished yet. And although it would have been great to post it today, maybe I'll share it for #fridayflash (providing it's finished by then).

I'm sharing the track here. Feel free to write something if you feel inspired as I did.

Music: Jasper TX: I Will Be Birds When I Die from In A Cool Monsoon

click below to listen!

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It's interesting to see how music, for me at least, can help me get to the words that are just below the surface.

I know I risk a bunch of pervy late-night surfers finding my site after Googling 'booty', but that's a chance I have to take, my friends.

My insomnia is back. And although I harbor the illusion that on nights like these, I'll get thousands of words down or 10 articles pre-written, the reality is I often surf, play FreeCell, watch MTV melodrama and generally fall victim to ABS all over again.

But for once, my ABS has been fruitful.

I was trolling through my old files, curious to see what little gems I could unearth, if any…and then I found it.

An old novel on the go.

I can't believe I forgot about it. I think I started it in '98. I've plotted up to Scene 22, and have written just over 15,000 words so far (I just took a quick glance at the main file. There was a 2nd file that may be edits of the first few scenes, so I'm not sure how much it differs from the original draft…) It's a supernatural thriller based around twin brothers. I took a quick read – and I don't hate it!

Of course, I'm sure my skills as a writer have improved since then (I'm hoping!), so there will probably be lots of tweaking and a reworking of the plot and all that.

But that's the fun stuff. The reworking. The piecing together of the puzzle. The bending and shaping and sculpting of this malleable lump of characters and plot and conflict into something tangible.

Could it be that I have my NaNo 2010 project?!

For now, however, it's staying put on the back burner. As i start to remember the nuances of the story, I'm going to need to let it brew a little while longer as I think of what I want to do with it.

This weekend, I'm hoping to pick up my NaNo edits. I still feel like I'm on the outside looking in on the current piece, so if I can't make it work, I'm going to shelve it for now and move on to one of the other ones.

The thing that sucks is I know how I want this story to be. It's kind of similar to those mornings you wake after having a strange dream and you don't quite remember it but the residual strangeness seems to remain with you the rest of the day. I feel like it's just out of my grasp. I know eventually, I'll be able to push through the gossamer veil between the dream and reality. But right now, I'm still waiting…

Don't get me wrong. I love my writing desk. I searched lovingly (and longingly) for the perfect desk in local shops, online stores, and in local classifieds until I found the perfect one.

I am dazzled by its sweeping curves; smitten by its smooth surface. But some days, I just can't bear the thought of sitting at it.

Last week I wrote about how I seemed to be stagnating under piles of work and forced schedules. That's the thing about routines. Often, they run the risk of transforming into a rut. The good thing is I learned my lesson and did something about it.

I know, one of the tips for being a productive writer is to breed creativity by getting into the routine of it all. Whether its the same time everyday, the same music, the same treasured pen or the lighting of that same scented candle, there's no denying that those little tricks can have a Pavlovian effect.

So, the moment I found myself becoming bored with my story, I knew it was time to try something new, or else risk the onset of ABS – Anything-But Syndrome.

C'mon. We're all friends here. You can admit falling ill to ABS before. Dusting, vacuuming, alphabetizing your CD collection, tackling that dreaded pile of laundry or – heaven help you -  paperwork. Anything-But working on your WIP.

For me, the solution this time was music. I'm the type of writer who needs music playing while I write. Nothing with lyrics, mind you, but a musical soundscape that drowns out the little anoyances, like ringing phones and honking cars outside, but still doesn't distract me from my writing.

All I needed was a loaded MP3 Player, an ambient playlist and my favorite pen and suddenly, words were spilling out onto the page with renewed urgency.Know what? I'll take it. Anything to keep my Muse on her toes. Even if it takes me 10 pages to really get into the groove of things, I'll take that over writer's block (aka boredom) anyday.

Current WIPs

• still whittling down one of my NaNo pieces, while adding a bit of flair. The idea is there, in my head. Now of I can just find the twisted words to translate the idea into something tangible
• working on a piece for #fridayflash! Finally! I've only ever done it once, but have always wanted to make it a habit. Two pieces in progress – one at 348 words, the other still waiting to be transcribed from handwritten notes. Hopefully one will be polished enough by Friday
• As noted above, almost there with my 500 Words A Day Challenge for today. Sadly, I haven't been putting as much time in as I would like, what with the freelancing and all. Better luck next week.
• still have to get to my task from last week of going over upcoming subs and deciding which ones I want to submit to. I know shouldn't complain…but so many great markets, so little time…

How's your writing day going? Making progress? A little behind? How do you woo your Muse?

If you’re a writer participating in WIP Wednesday, post a link to your blog in the comments!

Fellow WIP Wednesday participants:

• Aaron Polson – WIP Wednesday: Brain Splatter
• Cate Gardner -  WIP Wednesday: When There Were Words
• Jeremy Kelly: Back to the Book

Words Written - Today: 348 | January: 973 | 2010: 973