A Writer's Notebook, Day Two-Hundred-And-Ninety-Three

Another three poems today, which has become my standard for some time.  I do want to get myself writing at least one more a day, but for some reason, I often find it hard to get more writing done in the morning.  That is, though, a matter, I think, of will more than anything.  I know that the poems I write in the evening do not always come so easily, but I have been writing two poems at night for long enough that now I feel driven to keep that pace.  It really is just a matter of putting that same ethos to work on getting more written each morning.  Certainly, for a bit, it will be a matter of making that commitment and keeping to it, but eventually it will become a drive.

That is what has occurred for my nightly writing practice.  For example, tonight, after writing one poem, I took a bit of a break, during which I began to think that maybe I would only write that and go straight to working on tonight's blog entry.  However, when I got to the computer, a feeling came over me that I would regret not writing another poem tonight.  So, instead of getting to work here, I pulled open a new word document and stared at the blank space until an idea began to take shape.  Though I had consciously decided that it would be alright to just write one poem, I found that I was compelled to do that work anyway.  It is, by now, an ingrained habit, and I  don't have any desire to break it.

Tomorrow, then, I should begin to push myself to write another morning poem.  It seems rather daunting to me right now, if I am honest, which is ridiculous, as I am certain that I have the ability to write a poem at any time I really want.  I mean, I have gotten myself to a point where I can actually create a new piece on demand.  It may be that I should let myself, in the morning, allow myself to go back into that mode of writing about how I don't know what to write, at least for a bit, and only for that second poem.  I've not been writing those types of pieces recently, but, if my main goal is to start developing a consistent routine of writing two poems every morning, those pieces provide an easy route.  After a bit, when I have cemented that habit, I can then push for other kinds of work to fill that slot, but the first step needs to be getting comfortable with the demand.  It is not worth making it harder at first, as it will only stand as an obstacle to that primary goal.  Sure, I may not get the best work at first, but eventually I will reach the point I am out now with my evening work, where only one poem feels like slacking off.


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