Writing is a lonely business. I commented to my husband the other day that I felt like Anne Boleyn, banished to the Tower of London. He reminded me that poor Anne’s story didn’t end so well (divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived and all that) and maybe I should pick a different analogy.
So now I’m Queen Elizabeth, also banished to the Tower. (I think I just like the Tower of London.) Now I won’t lose my head, but instead I’ll get to be Queen after I get out. Yay for me!
But seriously, I do feel like I’m locked away and someone lost the key. Maybe they swallowed it; I don’t know.
Writing. Revising. Waiting.
Waiting is the hardest part.
Do you ever feel like you’re all alone in this business? What the heck do you do to stay sane?
Yeah.
I'm with you on the waiting. It sucks. But when I'm feeling locked up, I chat with my fellow writers 🙂 Like you! That's what blogging and Twitter are great for– reminding me I'm not alone.
Amalia- I think that might be the only remedy. Too bad we can't all get together for a drink!
Do you ever feel like you're all alone in this business?
Yes, but then one of my many lovely writer friends says hello.
What the heck do you do to stay sane?
Unwarranted assumption on your part!
I agree with Gary — what makes you think we're actually sane?
Aw, but like you said, when you "get out" you'll be a Queen! Just think of the reward when the waiting is over!
Blogging definitely helps! I miss having a real-life writing group, though — that always reminded me that a) I wasn't in it alone and b) we were all suffering!
Just popping over to answer your Q about Changeless, too — I loved it! But… the third book in the trilogy, Blameless, is coming out in Sept and I might want to read Changeless until closer to that. It stands alone for the most part, but has quite the cliffhanger ending to set up the next book. Have you read the first book, Soulless, yet? Gail Carriger's books are sort of paranormal/alt history/comedy of manners… it's a pretty amazing combination.
I blog to stay sane. I eat chocolate when I wait.
Waiting isn't in the least bit fun. Thankfully my life is busy enough there's always something I 'gotta do'! 🙂
I definitely feel banished to the tower while I wait for responses to submissions!
I need to banish my doubts to the tower instead!
Exactly how I'm feeling. You can blog to a degree but there are certain feelings you don't want to put out there on a public post. I think that's when I feel the worst — knowing that others feel the way I do but not being able to connect on it.
Writing is a solitary occupation. What do I do to stay sane? Write some more. Doesn't necessarily do anything to keep me sane, but it does keep me from thinking about anything else.
Supportive family and friends are a big plus.
Gary- Hello! Yeah, that might have been a big assumption on my part!
Matt- Maybe I was hoping someone out there was sane enough to keep me from going totally banana bonkers. Ha!
aLmYbNeNr- That's what I keep telling myself. I'll look back on all this and laugh myself silly.
Guinevere- I haven't read any of Carriger's books, but I want to. I think I might wait until I can read all three at once. I read the two Hunger Games books and I'm dying for the third one to come out.
Piedmont Writer- I hear ya! I'm eating tons of chocolate. And running a lot too.
Jemi- Life may be a little too busy right now. Such is the life of us teachers, eh?
Aubrie- That's a good way to think of it. Can I still be Queen then?
Jenna- I hear ya! Kind of like being all alone at a party, eh?
Vincenzo- I've been writing as much as I can, but with school wrapping up I've been a grading maniac. After this week I hope to be able to get more accomplished on Book #2. Until then I'm kind of treading water.
Ah… the tower… I surround myself with cute pets and then sing to them. Sanity? Who needs it!?
I used to feel alone all the time. Then I found blogging. I don't feel alone anymore! 🙂
Just as long as the hubby doesn't feel like Henry VIII, it's all good 🙂
I come online and find other people who are internet-ing and blogging from their towers and we chat and then the stone doesn't feel quite so cold and hard when I put down the quill and lay my head on the floor to go to sleep.
Or something like that.
Oh, I do feel the isolation sometimes. Novels take such a long time to write and so much of it feels like you're in a big black hole with no idea of if it's going well or not. Great analogy.
I'd agree with your choice to be Elizabeth rather than Anne – a much better outcome all round. The isolation can be overwhelming at times, which is why being able to connect via the internet can be such a smile-inducer. However, real face to face contact is best. I'd love to be able to fly up to you and chat – how about a long talk about Tudor history?
Enjoyed this analogy a lot. Yes, writing is a solitary pursuit. Then blogging came along to ease some of the loneliness with some pretty immediate meaningful communication.
I know what you mean. It can get very lonely in my office. Thank heavens for email and blogs. Makes my world a little bigger. :0)
I read your blog (and others) to stay sane! It's my only contact with the writing world…I really need to join a club or something.
Actually I don't feel alone. Thanks to blogging and social networking, I've never felt so connected before. Plus it helps knowing others are going through the same things as me. I don't know how writers used to do it, back in the days without the Internet.
Okay, love your analogies, btw. I couldn't stop laughing. 😀
Great post! Man, I know exactly how you feel.
Writing is such a lonely business and I often feel like a hermit as I huddle over my netbook, revising and writing and revising. I agree with others that reading other writing blogs helps me to stay sane. It's nice to know that there are thousands of other people going through the same things that I am!
Remember you're not just a writer…you're a reader:) We all love books, so when I need a mental refresher (just about every day) I go read a great book:)