Carolyn See’s fabulous book “Making a Literary Life”, discusses the joy of writing a letter to someone you admire. I like the idea of this and I picture myself sitting in an old style writing desk picking up a pen to share my praise.
Ummm….huh…let’s see here. There have been so many books I have enjoyed and so many writers I like. Which one should I write to first? As I hold the pen in ready position, my hand begins to cramp. Maybe email would be better. I pull out my laptop and turn it on….waiting…waiting. Ok, ready I open a new email and stare at the empty page.
Well I need to do some research to find someone to write to. I begin an intensive search looking for a author who is worthy of the time it will take to write this letter. Oh, this author has a nice website.
I should start my own author website for when I become a published writer. I wonder what I should include in it. I pull out of piece of paper and start mapping out what my website would look like and what I would include. I start searching for website templates, formats and hosting options.
My husband sticks his head around the corner, how is your author letter coming along? I look at the web page up on my computer “How to build a website” and sigh.
I click back to the email page that stands there empty and alone. I begin my search again for an author and pause as I try to think of the name of that writer that wrote that book about that “thing” and that “place”, what was it called again. In attempt to figure out the name of the book I end up on a website discussing the history of Indiana. I start thinking of a new novel idea using a character from Indiana.
I stop myself half way through the plotting of a whole new novel, shake my head and go back to the empty email. I stare at it. My mind is as blank as the page. It was then I realized procrastination as abducted me once again!
I close the empty email page and open up my novel. With a heavy sigh, I begin writing the next scene.
The Failing Novelist 