The past couple of days I have been cranky. Moody. Stressed out. I would like to blame it on the whole PMS thing, but it’s the wrong time for that kind of excuse.
Alas, when I get like this, I know what’s truly wrong… I haven’t been writing.
Well, I have been writing. I write every day because that is what I do to pay the bills. What I mean is I haven’t been working on my creative writing. The stuff that gets me out of my usual work of work, planning and to-do lists and into wonderful worlds I have created in my mind.
While I have known plenty of writers who become sad if they haven’t been able to write for a while, but I don’t know too many who become balls of stress if they have gone too long without
Mind you, I’m not talking about a matter of days here. It has been at least a fortnight – probably longer – since I last worked on one of my current projects. (“You really want to know why you haven’t published a novel yet, JM?”) But, noting my increasingly hostile mood and liking my husband enough to do something about it, I went to bed with my laptop in hand last night and got some writing time in.
Lo and behold, I find my mood and productivity levels greatly improved.
Am I surprised by this? Not really. I’ve always been happier when I’ve been working on something. As usual, the temptation is to let work rule my life and not get any creative writing done. Of course all that serves to do is grind on me until I become completely stressed.
So goes my punishment for forgetting to take my Artist Days.
Do you find you get cranky or stressed when you haven’t written something in a long time? Does it make you feel sad? Does taking some time to write creatively help improve your mood?
Critique Notes