Stress....an picturesque analysis..

I'm not sure if this is a timely post to combat my stress or just a general realization that I got during my numerous forays into understanding a teeny weeny bit of the human mind..

As writers we are prone to emotions, more often than not. Who wouldn't be if we are living multiple lives - er, our characters' included. Let me first try to explore a few reasons why the stress makes an hidden and unbidden entry into our lives....

1. The very fact that writers love what they do is a major cause. Surprised? This is so contrary to what others say.. that doing what you love is actually a stress-buster. I'm not saying the popular belief isn't true..but in writing, we invest a part of ourselves to give birth to the manuscript, which is equivalent to a child..and like any parent, we want our child to be the best and the most perfect. This need to give perfection to a subjective item (ie a story), itself could drive one up the wall, if one is not careful.

2. Having too many items on the plate.. Again this is so opposite of what we've come to believe in - that having mutiple MS's to focus on keeps us fresh, and cures even writer's block. Right? Of course. But there are times when mutiple suddenly seems too much to handle and can kind of make one distracted and lose their focus. I've often muttered to myself - do I focus on this small revision and get it done with or, focus on the major one that's creating trouble. ::Slaps forehead:: Dang, what about that half completed MS? Ooooh, the shiny new hero is just materializing right there.. he's cute isn't he? Now..how about his story? and so on. Nothing gets done, of course!

3. Competition... is in a way healthy, but when you see everyone around you just enjoying their stroke of good fortune, one starts wondering if their day will ever come.... and if their writing can ever be up to the mark? Or will they always be tagging along with unrealized dreams and at a point of time.. it can even lead to.. "What the heck am I doing? I can never compete with so and so author, whose books I gobble up. I cannot even write as nice as my writing-buddy/CP/friend..." and so on. If jealousy sniffs this dilemma of a writer, it can eaasily take up residence and fuel these self-deprecating thoughts into a full blown hatred of the world around us.

I had originally named my post as "stress to creativity", and well.. intending to explore on ways to combat the omnipresent bugger (aka stress)... , but then.. once I started to cook up some drawings (to calm my mind), I thought..let's hold on to that topic for later :)

So.. do feel free to add in any more causes of stress that I've missed out and let me know if my analysis is good enough to be submitted to an online imaginary-writer's journal ;)

NaNoo's and intercontinental moves..

I know..I know..a late post, no different than the past couple of weeks. But this time I have a purrfect excuse.. Uh, no, not on the spicier variety in my stories, but on the me, me, me.. front.

For one.. I will be moving to ::gulp:: Canada. Talk about a move across a few continents for a girl who hasn't been out of my hometown for a couple of months at the most... I hope I don't miss this weather, culture and heck, even the bumpy roads and nasty traffic jams. I cannot even think about my parents and in-laws yet, since we've never stayed a few hours away from them.. But then, this is something important for my DH who had been like a fish out of water till date without working in his field..and hence..Canada, here I come!

A few of my close friends and writing buddies already know this, but I wasn't even ready to acknowledge it to myself until a week back, let alone put it out for the world to see... As of now, I've officially put my papers down on my day-job (can you see me kicking and screaming in protest here?). ::sob:: This was like a new job I landed in after much struggle after the great '09 depression when many people lost their jobs (including me) and to my surprise, I kind of scooped the perfect balance to start my writing along with working as well... And now? I cannot even call myself SAHM, cos I don't have any kids yet (and not planning to..well..that's like another blog post altogether).. I'm just hoping I don't convert this into a blog of "how I am surviving without my job" chronicles..and instead.. handle one thing at a time and do whatever it is that I'm meant to do. And WRITE !

Some might say.. this is like a perfect dream come true to concentrate on writing.. Well... I know many who yearn to be a full time writer... But.. I don't know.. I'm crazy or something.. I have till now needed the stimulation of a totally different day job to fire my imagination into my stories.. and I hope that this huge move and subsequent upheaval doesn't uproot me from something that I hold dear..ie writing. Well.. time will tell and I'm not someone who easily gives up. Call me a dog with a bone or lack off.. I'll keep trying !

And.. I hope everyone else is firing away and making great progress on NaNoWriMo... And I don't mean to sound sour, but I'm better off not doing NaNo. Not like I didn't try..but the ones that jumped out my first attempt at NaNo last year weren't worthy to even be shelved. I kind of like the freedom of doing something whenever my muse likes to play. Like I write furiously for about a couple of weeks and recharge for a couple of weeks and start again. Till now that's kept my muse constantly flying and I wouldn't want to trap it into a cage by giving it a daily word count limit and rushing towards a deadline.. Give me a "real" deadline any day and you might see me eating my own words :-D LOL.. Well.. I can only hope.

A long overdue status check..
Revisions - nada. Not done.
But the story to noc bite - Lets just say the one I planned is still under works, but a new baby is out there. Does the feverish anticipation and subsequent nail biting ever get any easier?

I hope the busy packing, unpacking, purchasing, and travelling to home town and yeah, trying to learn for one course work as well along with my hectic notice-period phase keeps me occupied enough ;)

On another note.. I might be MIA (or not), for this month and parts of next month with my first home-shifting.. So wish me luck.