May 9, 2011

Disrupted Routines

First up, everyone should stop by Big Bad Ashi, a new blog by Aislinn O'Loughlinn. Ash is one of my oldest friends and is a great writer. Her YA urban fantasy trilogy, Big Bad Me, is currently in the querying process through her literary agency, The Rights Factory.

Right, onto this Monday's post.

I get into work really early. Often as much as an hour before I'm meant to start. I like to use this time to have coffee, catch up on blogs, and get a bit of writing done. This morning I got in and my PC wouldn't start up. It turned out the problem was just a faulty power cable, but it did mean I couldn't log onto my PC until nearly half past nine. I'd lost my entire morning of time normally set aside to start my day the way I'm used to.

I can't stand when this happens. When my routine is broken unexpectedly I feel totally out of control and can even get a bit irritable. It's like everything is in a rush and I've missed out on time I normally set aside for myself. This just throws me off for the rest of the day.

Still, I had Janice Hardy's The Pain Merchants (UK title of The Shifter) to keep me going, which I'm really enjoying. Hopefully I can get caught up on the writing later tonight.

Do any of you have similar problems if your daily or even weekly routine is distrupted?

5 comments:

  1. I'm generally OK with routine disruption, but if I lose writing time it can be very hard to get it back becausemy schedule is generally busy - something usually has to get bumped off for me to get my writing time back!

    I got an unexpected hour of writing time this morning - maybe I stole yours? :P

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  2. I used to get more upset - especially when, like you, i'd get to work early for a reason, only to have it all fall pieces. But I had more stressful jobs then and so my easier lifestyle is definitely a factor in my ability to handle those disruptions better.I try to remember that we can always Start Over, in any given moment. Stop. And start over. Say it three times and click your heels together!!

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  3. I think I'm generally frustrated because while working on Locked Within I was getting as many as two or even three thousand words written on a good day. Guess I need to work my way back up to that.

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  4. Hey! Thanks for the mention, dude :) I've definitely gotten some traffic cos of it! Yes, I get VERY frustrated when my morning/evening routine is disrupted, even if it's by something nice. Once I get it into my head I'm gonna do THIS much writing today, I can wind up incredibly stressed if it doesn't happen. I think that's why Dave's forcing my to take a little break

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  5. Well, if it gets interrupted I just try to relax. I tell myself, tomorrow I'll try again. No big deal. Life goes on.

    The best thing is NOT TO STRESS OUT.

    Take care. And keep writing whenever you can!
    Ann Best, Memoir Author

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