CG Express

Donuts Anyone?

There’s nothing that can kill enthusiasm more than disappointment. The higher the place of success and vision, the harder the fall. I was granted a new team, finally, after years of lobbying and cajoling how necessary a team was needed. I have a staff, ambitious, ready to take on the challenge of forging an identity. It’s a great day. I heard rumors of new office space and started dreaming. I saw in my mind not just desks, but an enclosed area where people can come by to get help from the team; a suite to hold meetings in, share coffee, donuts on Fridays, lunches on Tuesdays; a wipe board, a place to post announcements maybe awards, photos of the team. We are the flagship of a new era. My optimism and zeal took off and I drew the whole group up in my cloud of the future. And then…it was all dampened by words like : ‘that space is designated for…” and “we’ll see what we can do, maybe some desks near…”. Not exactly, actually not at all, what I had in mind. What kind of team can we be sharing cube walls? Maybe if everyone stands up same time, we can face each other across the dividers, maybe pass a plate of donuts while other teams and random people look on, making us feel guilty for not sharing. I haven’t given up on the office idea. I’m convinced it is as needed as the team itself. It may come in stages though. I may need to modify the plan, accept the best I can get and scout for better.

So what does this have to do with writing? It reminds me of how sometimes when I’m writing, I get an idea in my head. It could be a snippet of conversation between characters or a few lines of description that I fall in love with. It is the muse that spawns a new project. But it becomes obvious, that the very character I gave life to or that lovely, inspiring way to describe the mood of the antagonist, so incredibly unique and clever, no longer fits. Say it ain’t so! Yes, my friends, we writers must be brave, courageous enough to leave behind our ‘loved ones’. Accept that the relationship is over, at least for now. It is for the best and the sooner we cut and paste that baby into a “save for later” file, the better.

Is there any part of your current work you’re hanging onto because you just don’t  know how to break up with it? Keep this in mind, the separation allows both to go on and be better than they would ever be struggling to make it work.

Write on! Break up if you need to!

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