Poisoned Purple Pen

A Little Gift

Motivational Monday! Jazz singer Sarah Vaughan , born on this day in 1924, once said, "When I sing, trouble can sit right on my shoulder and I don't even notice." What affect does writing have for you when trouble sits on your shoulder?

One of the easiest things for me to do is get lost in my work. It can also be the most difficult. Usually, when I'm stressed out I clean to get my aggressions out. But coming back to the computer and writing is something I look forward to. A lot of my emotions come out loud and clear in my writing. I find it next to impossible to keep my emotions at bay most days. This can be a really good thing depending on the scene I'm working on.

I think getting caught up in our work is the case for a lot of us. It's hard not to lose ourselves in the story or poem. Time can rush by when we are in the throes of it trying to get the things in our heads down, and then going through the process of perfecting it until we are satisfied. I tend to be a perfectionist when it comes to my writing. I never realized I was until someone pointed that fact out to me.

Whatever our personal issues are, writing can be our own therapy, a little escape that takes us out of the here and now, and lets us focus on something else. I know for me, there have been times when writing has helped me figure out a personal problem I'd been having. That's the beauty of this world we as writers live in. You may be trying to distance yourself from something going on around you, and yet somehow it sits in the back of our minds and suddenly a solution will dawn on you. It's a gift.