So I’ve been part of an online group of writers, mostly women, with a couple of (male) barkeeps thrown in, because somebody needs to bring us the booze.
The Wenches are scattered across the US, Canada (I think), Sweden, the UK, and Australia, so, sadly, our wine parties are mostly virtual.
Our genres are also scattered: Young Adult, Horror, Women’s Contemporary Fiction, Romance, General Lit’rature, and more. Also, Dinosaur Porn.
Even though I’ve been writing longer than some of the other wenches have been alive, I have fewer published works. I don’t have any dino porn.
Actually, I’m a little wistful about my lack of dino porn cred, but maybe next year.
I’ve had a number of life interruptions in my writing career (which is squeezed in between day job duties anyway). And every time my creative juices seemed to dry up, I thought – I feared – that I would have to give up my writing dreams. That I just didn’t have it in me anymore.
Maybe you’ve experienced life interruptions, too. A marriage or love affair that ended painfully. A move, a job layoff. The death of a beloved in your inner circle. I’ve had those. Most recently, it was a breast cancer diagnosis that sidelined me, leaving me without time, energy, or creative mojo to keep putting words in a row. It was super early, super treatable, and I’m in full remission now, but it consumed quite a bit of bandwidth.
Your creative thing might not be writing. It might be basket weaving, or ceramics, or interpretive dance. And then life interrupts, and you wonder if you’ll ever be able to do the thing again.
I’ve gone through this cycle a couple of times now. And every time, I thought, “This is it, stick a fork in me, I’m done.”
Yet despite my thoughts and fears, it’s like riding a bike, or sex. The creative power does all come back. So be patient with yourself, lovely one, and don’t despair if you too are experiencing Creatus Interruptus.
Your love for the thing, your energy, your creative mojo (not to be confused with my adolescent kittens, Mojo and Creativity) will all come back, and more powerfully and juicily than you can ever imagine. My writing – and my sex life – have never been richer or more pleasurable.
My memoir Sex, Drugs, Rock ‘n Roll and a Tiara: How I Celebrated Kicking Cancer’s Ass will be was released in 2017. I live in Los Angeles with my two cats, Motivation and Creativity. Want to be on my mailing list, so you know when this work comes out, and other news? Sign up HERE.