An epiphany slapped me across the face in the shower this morning. Bet you didn't even know epiphanies were waterproof.
I have come to the conclusion that I gotta do what I gotta do. Enough with my unnamed project languishing like a limp, vampire-drained maiden across a chaise lounge on the second-floor veranda in the morning humidity. I cannot change my spots. I need to write like there's nobody reading. Which is likely not so far-fetched.
I'm not talking about pieces I plan to submit to various and sundry call-outs. I can play by the rules as competently as the next writer when I so choose. However, when it comes to my seething cauldron of creative juices that will eventually be rendered into a tasty treat for a decidedly eclectic palate, I must let my freak flag fly. To do otherwise would be a gross disservice to my voice. I refuse to become a barkless dog. Or a mockingbird. One style does not fit all.
No, I will not be a stifled Edith Bunker. I will not try to type with one hand tied behind my back and the other encased in an insulated, waterproof mitten. Like Kramer, I'm out there, baby, and lovin' every minute of it. Only with the benefit of underwear. There was no groundbreaking incident that led to this decision. No forty-eight-hour marathon in my dark basement lair, chain-sipping Diet Coke. It just hit me this morning.
I blame the thyroid meds.
Goin' commando. Whatever slips out, slips out.
ReplyDeleteThose thyroid meds can be tricky. I know!
ReplyDeleteWell nothing like getting slapped in the shower, and by an epiphany, no less! I say, Look out world, here comes Val! Did you also begin singing, "I gotta be meeeee! I gotta be meeee!"
ReplyDeleteGo for it, follow the yellow brick...gold in them there words of yours!
ReplyDeleteYes,some epiphanies are waterproof,but beware, they are the worst kind. One lead me to rise early and write down everything--you know stream of conscious stuff, dreams, plans to take over the world. It was all long hand in a spiral note book--crazy stuff in the light of day. The lack of sleep put my poor bod over the edge, I caught the next viral virus and ended up on death's bed for two weeks. Writing like that invites attack from the dark side.
ReplyDeleteYou know thats the whole point of the Nanawrimo (sp) craze. Write without stopping yourself, go for quanity not quality. The idea that you can't edit a submissable draft without a complete first draft.
ReplyDeleteYeah...pour that sucker out, girl. Don't self-edit, just spew. It feels good!
I do love a good epiphany!
ReplyDeleteNothing like an epiphany to get things moving. Go for it. The only thing stopping you is . . . you! :)
ReplyDeleteSioux,
ReplyDeletePlease direct me to the nearest link to buy brain bleach to scrub that involuntary image from my brain.
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Stephen,
So right when they're right, and so wrong when they're wrong.
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Becky,
I seriously considered lifting my voice in that song, but I refrained.
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Linda,
Thank goodness I wasn't slapped by a ghost in the shower like you. No clawing to remove that epiphany from where it was wrapped around my face. It was simply, POW! WOW! THANK YOU, VAL. I think my epiphany hangs out with that SLAM BAM guy.
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Leenie,
I am hiding all my spiral notebooks. Since I already get up at 4:50 a.m., I think I can resist the early rising. I may never catch a worm, or be healthy, wealthy, and wise, but neither shall I fly a kite in a thunderstorm.
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Therese,
I tend to avoid NaNoWriMo because I have already spewed. I've got several years of material (okay, EIGHT years of material) on my supersecret blog. I need the opposite of spewing. To pick a few good ideas, expand, polish, and link together with a theme.
Now, if I ever want to push forward with a novel, NaNoWriMo would be right up my alley.
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Kathy,
You can never have too many epiphanies. They're not like stray cats to old ladies who live alone.
Lisa,
ReplyDeleteYes, and I tend to do it on a regular basis. I need to quit caring what people might think. As I show any evidence of that here.
My post about feces transplants was not well-received. And I, a thoughtful purveyor of scientific discoveries, was only trying to educate the masses.