I stare. I stare some more. It sits there, white and blank and uninviting. I'm not imagining this, it really is staring back at me, I can feel it, it's devoid glare boring into my very brain. Fine. I'm stubborn. I can sit here and stare too. I can sit here all day if that's what it takes. Eventually, you will crack, oh yes, my dauntingly empty friend, you will crack and you'll be all full of wordy goodness.
Nothing. It's not working. Stare harder. That's it, really get those eyeballs working. Try not to stare too hard, though, don't want the forehead to start bleeding (not again, anyway). It's willpower, it's mind over matter. You have the mind and it is the matter and, at some time and with enough eyeballing, the matter will bow, the blankness will recede and the words will be there.
It's still not working. Try looking away and looking back. Yeah, that's it, catch it off guard. Maybe try a bit of a nonchalant whistle. Even ease the chair back a little (a good audible scrape should make it more authentic) and maybe it'll magically fill up while you're not paying attention. Doo dee doo, oh, what's that over there, looks mightily interesting, maybe I'll just inspect that for a little- aha!
Damn. Still nothing. Maybe you were on to something with the looking around, though. The white abyss provides no easy muse. Maybe a thing other than the nothing will inspire. OK, well, let's have a bit of a look-see. Hmmm, well, that's just rubbish and really needs to be thrown out (is three bags of rubbish in your bedroom excessive? Probably....nah, it's fine. When there's four, maybe it's time to throw stuff away.) Scruffy rucksack? Nah. Piles of DVDs? Pfff, where to start? Untidy pile of clean clothes that really needs to be sorted out so I don't spend ten minutes every morning looking for a pair of socks that match up and then not bothering and just putting on the first two I picked up anyway? Well, I think that's pretty much covered that. Boxes of comics and shelves full of books (these are a few of my favourite things)? That wouldn't really make much of a change, always banging on about those.
OK, blank space, you win. I've got nothing. Zip, zilch, nada, rien, bugger all. I guess I just won't bother writing anything today and skip straight to tomorrow. Oh well, hopefully no one will notice...
8 comments:
what works for me sometimes is doing a google images search of a random phrase, like 'pickles in space'. you don't even have to use a pic, the internet is cool like that.
I feel your pain! Write anyway. I know it sounds stupid, but just write lists. Like a list of why you can't think of anything to write. Or why your favourite socks are your favourite socks. Anything. Before you know it, you've got something.
Lana - Hmm, random image search, I like that...
Anna - Lists are good. I like a good list. You could even say I'm a compulsive lister. There always a list of something knocking about the house somewhere...
I came over here to read your post for today and you haven't written anything, not a word, zip, zilch, nada, rien, bugger all.
Right, I'm off to Anna's.
Can I come too?
Isn't that something the actress said to the Bishop (or vice versa) ?
Ah, the eternal question - which came first, the actress or the bishop?
Pardon my French but shouldn't that be "who", not "which"?
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