I’m a pretty consistent writer. Six days a week, I generally get in at least an hour a day, if not a few hours. If not, I feel guilty and my self-imposed deadline (first draft before I start my MFA in July) presses down.

And yet since my spring break holiday, I’ve been finding it hard to get back on track. Although I consistently put in my hour of pre-work writing, my novel-in-progress has remained at arms’ length.

The excuses are many:

• I’ve hit a tricky, vital section. So much relies on these few scenes, plus I’ve added a twist to make them even more complicated. Rethinking is slowing my forward momentum.
• I didn’t write at all during my holidays, and now feel removed. I need to reacquaint myself with my characters and storyline.
• Easter came and went. Couldn’t I enjoy some long-weekend lazy time?
• Our family got a new dog. Spending time in the yard both preps my budding garden (and I generally abhor gardening, so should leap on this yard-work impulse) and allows him some off-leash time to explore.

So today I’ll garden and cook and vacuum and play with the dog guilt-free. Tomorrow I’ll get back to writing. Promise.

How do you avoid writing?

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