by JohnJaySmith

Created on: July 31, 2007

The problem with creative writing is that doing it implies you're creative. And the more creative you are, the more creative you can get with your excuses, even when it comes to something you love. Like that whole "writing" thing.

"I have no time to write," says a writer you know. "I have to run errands."
"I can't write now," you say. "Maybe I'll get so into it, and start typing so fast, that I'll slip and sprain a finger on the keyboard. Why, just last week I heard a story about a guy who broke both hands while typing. Okay, so I only heard parts of the story, and it might actually have been about a broken freezer at the ice cream shop, but still."

And that's just the beginning.

"Oh," your friend might say, "I can't write. I have dishes to wash."
Bah! That's nothing compared to the ol' "Holy cow, that squirrel that just ran past my window might have been a flying squirrel, and maybe it's on the way to join its flying squirrel buddies so they can launch their plan for global conquest starting with the overthrow of the local convenience store. I must go follow the squirrel and make sure it's doing nothing shady!" excuse.

"I have no time!" says a family member. "The dog must be walked."
"Forget the dog," you say. "I must learn science so that I can engineer a superdog that can walk itself! Think of the benefits of a walking superdog! It can open a lemonade stand and earn some cash to pay for its own dog food! Yowsa, what a swell idea."

"It's too late to write. I'm too tired." A lame excuse from a conventional person, trumped by the "That blinking light up there might be a UFO, and if I don't run outside to check, that crackpot alien-obsessed nutzoid down the street might be the first to greet the spacemen. And then he'll be famous and not me! I must check this out immediately!" excuse.

It just goes on and on. While a healthy dose of creativity can propel your story or novel to soaring new heights, it can also cause you to latch on to the dumbest excuses imaginable. The important thing is to realize that the little voice in your head, the one telling you to procrastinate because a rainbow might appear at any moment and lead you to a pot of gold and a jolly jig-dancing leprechaun, is a voice best left ignored.

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