I hate doing laundry. I hate cleaning the kitchen. I hate going to the supermarket. I hate going to the dentist. But there is one particular time when I love doing those four things I hate.
When I’m on deadline.
If we all became nudists, we'd never have to do laundry again.
Why? Because basically, I’d rather be doing ANYTHING than planting my butt in the chair and writing during deadline time. Yet that is a total paradox because if I didn’t have the deadline, the book would never get written. Whenever anyone asks me, “How long does it take you to write a book?” My answer is always, “It depends on when my deadline is.” If my deadline is six months from now, it’s going to take me six months to write the book. It my deadline is three months from now, it’s going to take me three months to write it.
OMG the book is due in FIVE MINUTES!!!
I hate pressure–yet I can’t seem to write without it. And for reasons I simply can’t figure out, I always make the pressure worse for myself by finding literally hundreds of things that need to be done when my butt needs to be in the chair. I get it there–but it’s a real struggle. Why do I do this to myself? Beats me.
Butt in chair, typing away.
So, anyone else out there a procrastinator? Do you find yourself avoiding things you know you must do, only to find yourself up against a wall and struggling to get to them done? Or are you blessed with the “I will focus” chromosome? (lucky you!) And on a completely unrelated note–is anyone else watching the US Open (another form of procrastination–someone please save me from myself!)
Tennis player Rafael Nadal. You're welcome.
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{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
I think procrastination is part of the writer’s make-up. I don’t know a single one who stays disciplined through the long process of completing a book. I think discipline stifles creativity. What do you think?
I’m the biggest procrastinator I know. In college I took Introduction to the New Testament. The first day of class we were given the assignment to write a review of every book in the New Testament. I had a whole semester, but I waited until the night before it was due. I sat in the bathtub and cried for about 2 hours,then I got out and wrote my paper. I got an A!! But I don’t know how you authors do it. I’d be dehydrated from all the crying I’d do!
I think I’m just an overoptimistic planner, which is odd, because when i was managing projects, I was REALLY good at work estimation. We rarely got behind on the projects, but lately, it seems like I think I can get everything done (which I could if I worked 20 hour days).
I’ve been better recently, trying to stop putting off work, but I’ve got a long way to go, says Kathleen, now sorting laundry, paying bills, and THEN sitting down to work. Sigh.
I’ll join the chorus. I do my very best work at the very last minute. It doesn’t work so well with knittng projects, but just about anything else I do is right down to the wire.
I still wish I could knit. One of these days, I’m going to learn. Like, maybe a week before my deadline.
Yes! With the book due in five minutes and 3,000 pages left to write, I’ll take up knitting! Perfect timing!
Well I’d volunteer to teach you both so you had one more thing you could use to procrastinate with. I would however much rather teach Rafael Nadal anything but knitting.
Jacquie! I never knew we were separated at birth! Clearly, you’re my twin! Yes, and every book I tell myself I will NOT do that. That I’m going to be organized and methodical, yada yada yada.
Actually, I was organized and methodical one time. That book needed the most revisions of anything I’ve ever written. Coincidence? Possibly, but now my sneaky psyche has justification for procrastination…and justification is always a dangerous thing!
So surprised I haven’t been watching the Open. My husband’s usually glued to the set during the big tennis games.
I’m usually watching, too, but I haven’t turned it on yet.
We are so alike in this way. If I could just get some book deal with deadline I’d probably write many more books. I do so much better under pressure without it I just whittle time away.
You have to set yourself a deadline and mean it. Maybe attach a little reward. Before I had an official deadline, I would do this. My reward was allowing myself to query the agents I had on a list, and that led to the actual deadlines that I’m avoiding now.
LOL, Sherri. I hear Rosanne Rosannadanna in my head saying, “It’s always somethin’!”
Wow–I guess that old adage Misery Loves Company is true–because I’m so glad it’s not just me!!
But now the question is–WHY do we do this to ourselves??
I know! I know! Pick me! Pick me!
I’m a huge Alias fan, and there’s one scene where Sydney is describing her escape from captivity to the shrink (who was in Thirtysomething, but that’s neither here nor there). The shrink is expressing some amazement that Sydney is basically Wonder Woman without the campy outfit, and Sydney says (and I paraphrase), “In my experience, adrenaline is the best drug.”
It’s so true.
You know all those Famous Literary Authors who wrote drunk? Never in a million could I do that (I’d fall asleep–I’d have no idea what I was writing–it would be bad all the way around). But apparently my drug of choice is an adrenaline rush! And I’m not the only one. Bwahahahahahaha
I do my best work under pressure, so the adrenalin thing must be true.
Jacquie, I am also a major procrastinator. I don’t have deadlines, but I always put things off to the last minute. I do get them done, but would feel less stress if I did them in a more timely fashion. Unfortunately, my oldest son has also inherited the procrastinator gene…..
THIS IS ME! THIS IS SO ME!! Just yesterday i was asking Sherri how long a certain amount of pages would take, and she told me, and I said, man, I have no time left, I have to do nothing but this for the next several days, and then proceeded to work about 2 hours yesterday. Granted, I had something else I had to do. But you think I might have rearranged my schedule. No. I did not. I just let that pressure cooker build and build and build
This is me, Jacquie. Major procrastinator. My deadline is looming and I need every minute, but I keep finding other things that need my attention.