Turn I Can't Into I Can
By Janice Seagraves
I used to work for a retired couple. The woman surprised me
one day by telling me that she was an artist. When they moved into their
current house, she thought she would have a room to paint in. However, her
husband took the only spare room as his den.
She actually thought she couldn't paint until she got a room to work in.
She actually thought she couldn't paint until she got a room to work in.
I thought that was odd. I paint, draw, and do crafts. All I
need is the end of the dinning table, a bit of space on the coffee table, or
when my back was still good, I’d work on the floor.
As for my writing, I have a desk shoved into the corner near the dinning table where I work. A corner is all I need for my office.
As for my writing, I have a desk shoved into the corner near the dinning table where I work. A corner is all I need for my office.
Speaking of writing. Some people can’t write without the computer, which is fine. But I
know a few individuals who prefer using a pad to write on. They enjoy the textural
feel of the pencil or pen in their hand, and the scratch sound as the nip goes
along the paper. They take their pad everywhere, and it tucks in very neatly
into a purse or pocket. And then at the end of the day, they transfer their writing
to the computer.
The same can be said for people and their laptops. They are very portable. They take them everywhere. And not just to the coffee shop. One woman who has kids underfoot all day long, takes her laptop all over the house. When she’s cooking, her laptop is on the kitchen counter. If she’s ironing, her laptop is like a faithful companion sitting nearby, on a table or chair. When she’s in the living room with her husband and kids, the laptop is on her lap. She gets a great deal of writing done.
These people have turned the I can’t into I can.
Make your New Years Resolutions: I Can
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Janice Seagraves website: http://janiceseagraves.org/
Janice Seagraves's blog: http://ladyjanice.blogspot.com/
Good post, Janice. I agree with you about writing anywhere. I once wrote a whole chapter in longhand while waiting at a track meet for my son's race. I used to write all my first drafts in longhand. If you want to write, you'll find a way.
ReplyDeleteTruer words were never spoken. As a person who's moved MANY times in my life and lost a lot of precious things along the way, I've learned to make do with whatever's available--that, & to leave a house before you have to wash the windows....:) Meredith
ReplyDeleteI've met so many people who claim to want to be authors except for... The excuses are never ending. If you want to write (or whatever you want to do), you'll create an opportunity to do it, no matter what. If you don't, then you really didn't want to do it in the first place.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Janice!
Yay, Janice. I've gotten so tired of people saying they want to write so badly but can't find the time. One of them I loaned a book on how to write. She returned it saying she'd read it and found out she didn't have the dedication and knew she never would, and thanked me for the wake-up call. How's that for honesty?
ReplyDeleteThrough the years, I've utilized the kitchen table and a manual typewriter, a corner of the bedroom, paper, pen, whatever was available. Writer's always find a way and the time to write. Thanks for the great post!
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteI always do the rough draft by hand since I write faster than I type and also think faster with pen in hand. My most making the time to write was when my husband was having the repain of an aortic anurysm where the aorta leaves the heart. Was a long operation and writing kept me from focusing on his chances of surviving the surgery. Can Do is already better than Can't.
Good for you, Janice. People who can: do whatever they can, whenever they can and anywhere they can. Now is that convoluted or what? lol
ReplyDeleteIf you have passion for your work you CAN!
ReplyDeleteI wrote my first book in 2006 in pen and ink in six spiral notebooks. I couldn't bring myself to write romance on the shared family computer, so that was my only choice.
Hi Cara,
ReplyDeleteI feel that way too.
Hi Meredith,
I like your attitude. :)
Hi Tina,
I agree with you.
Hi Jean,
That's honest.
Hi Paris,
Yes, you can do it if you really want to.
Hi JL,
Good for you.
Hi Sandy,
Yes, but I understood every word. :)
Hi Katalina,
But, you did find a way. Way to go!
Janice~
Very, very true Janice. The I cant's never achieve their dream. All I need is a pen and a piece of paper. I don't need a special area or expensive gadgets. Great post. Lynda
ReplyDeleteHi Lynda,
ReplyDeleteExactly. All the bells and whistles can't make you a writer. Only you can do that.
Janice~