Blogging is a completely different process from writing. I know that sounds weird, but stick with me; I’ll explain:
When I blog, it’s usually a thought or an emotion that NEEDS to come out. I get this fullness in my chest, this sort of shout-from-the-rooftops urge to create, and I have to get it out before I can go on and do anything else. If I blog about something, it’s usually because I feel it strongly enough to share it with the world. I think it’s universal enough, or I just need enough support, that I’m willing to put it out there.
Writing, especially in hopefully-this-will-one-day-be-a-book form, is…somewhat different. It requires discipline. I have to sit down and will myself to put words on the page, will myself to find the urge to create when, most times, my mind is elsewhere. Writing requires trying, and for me, that’s a new concept. I’ve never had to TRY before. It’s weird attempting to discipline your passions; to put them on reserve and call them to action when the timing is right. I feel, most times, like I’m trying way too hard, and I don’t like it.
I need to master this. I need to set aside a time every day that I will write, a time when the flood gates will open and everything will be allowed to pour out. And, more than anything, I need to stop self-editing along the way and just get it out already.
I’m open to suggestions.
