The other day, I'm out enjoying a nice fall day and playing a little football with a friend. I jump to catch a ball and BAM, I land on it wrong. Oh snap, something inside snaps. The pain spreads like wildfire. Right away I know it is broken. I've done this before. I go to the doctors and yup, my ankle is fractured. I'm in a cast for the next three weeks and then the boot for another month. So much for my off-season football training. I'm spending the next two months hobbling around on crutches. Maybe I can get some writing done.
Writing?! I haven't done much of that lately with school, football, and all. Now that I'm laid up awhile, I see that broken bones and writing go through much the same process. BAM a story idea hits you. It spreads like a wildfire inside you. Consumes you. You have to write, but you also have to contain it. Mold it even. Once the cast comes off and you're done, you need another pair of eyes to diagnose the writing's status. Maybe some beta readers or an editor. Usually you need some more time to fix the problem. So revise, revise, revise. Polish that writing. Once again you go back to an expert for another round of probing and if you are lucky, then you pass. It sounds like a lot of work. It is. But you know that. It sounds painful. It is. But you know that too. But in the end it is fun and it is worth it because you and your writing come out stronger. Broken bones and writing - each have a story to tell, but for a good, healthy one - it takes time. Don't rush it.
In the meantime, here's a list of some of my favorite "doctor" sites:
www.writersdigest.com
http://writershelpingwriters.net -
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