Feel That Pull? It's the Writing Magnet

Here I sit, at the edge of a weekend. Exhausted from a hectic work week - looking back at all the grading, lecturing, planning I've done. I should be wanting to sit in front of the t.v. Or even go to sleep early. Or just do nothing at all.

But here I sit at the computer, feeling it - that pull to write. To create something.

It's been a little while since I've written. Oh, sure, I talk about writing every day. I tell my students about run-ons and fragments, about characterization, about setting and dialogue. But during a busy semester, rarely do I have time to sit down and put these lessons into practice, just for me.

So, often, I find myself during my rare "down" time wanting to write. Feeling the pull, strongly, like a magnet - toward familiar characters, toward new ideas, toward possible revisions.

John Grisham's writing magnet pulled him to get up at 4am (when he was working as a lawyer) and write for an hour every day before he left for court. I'm SO glad my magnet doesn't beckon at that early hour! ;-)

I like that it pulls me, this writing magnet. Sometimes I wish it didn't, but I'm glad it does - because that's how I know I'm still interested in the process. That I still long for it, still want it in my life as often as possible. In fact, I might even be a little bit unnerved if I didn't feel at least the pull, the desire to write. That would be a very sad day...