A Day in the Life of a Writer...
For the past three weeks I've gone to the CSUF library at 10am and left at 5 in the afternoon. And every day I sit in the same desk on the second floor in a corner of the stacks hidden behind about thirty rows of books. The reason I sit at this same desk is because it is the ONLY desk by a window overlooking the Peace Garden which has an outlet for my laptop. And since my laptop battery has a life of roughly two hours, I MUST sit at this particular desk.
Also for the past three weeks an Asian girl has sat at the desk just in front of me. And since there is no wall behind her, she doesn't have an outlet. But this isn't a problem because she doesn't use a laptop. Rather, she spends her time crunching numbers on a calculator and sneaking bites of potato chips even though it's forbidden to eat in the library.
A few days ago, Monday to be precise, I showed up at the library at my usual time of 10am and guess who was sitting at MY desk?!? Yes, that rotten little potato chip cruncher! I couldn't believe it! I was happily rounding the corner, all set to write a new chapter in my novel, when I noticed MY chair wasn't pushed in and there was a bright red backpack hanging off the back.
So, naturally, I was pissed. I sat in front of her but it was difficult to concentrate; all I could think about was the nerve of that little floozy who'd filched my spot. And to make matters worse I could hear her crunching happily away behind me as if to rub it in.
The next day I showed up an hour earlier and sprinted up the stairs and past the many rows of books to my EMPTY desk. I was going to do a little victory dance but then I remembered the camera in the corner and decided to do all my celebrating internally. And boy was I! Unfortunately, the little Asian thief never showed so I was deprived of the excessive gloating I had planned for her
Today, however, was a different story. I showed up at 10am and the smiley Doritos chick was back in my spot. So once again I sat in front of her and seethed for a good twenty minutes before I could get into my story. So tomorrow I plan to show up early again. I might even bring some fart spray. Oh yeah, and maybe some gooey yellow slime that I can spread all over the desk. That's it! I'll pretend to be really sick, sneezing and coughing and farting. Then I'll cover the desk in slime!
Doritos chick is going down!!
Also for the past three weeks an Asian girl has sat at the desk just in front of me. And since there is no wall behind her, she doesn't have an outlet. But this isn't a problem because she doesn't use a laptop. Rather, she spends her time crunching numbers on a calculator and sneaking bites of potato chips even though it's forbidden to eat in the library.
A few days ago, Monday to be precise, I showed up at the library at my usual time of 10am and guess who was sitting at MY desk?!? Yes, that rotten little potato chip cruncher! I couldn't believe it! I was happily rounding the corner, all set to write a new chapter in my novel, when I noticed MY chair wasn't pushed in and there was a bright red backpack hanging off the back.
So, naturally, I was pissed. I sat in front of her but it was difficult to concentrate; all I could think about was the nerve of that little floozy who'd filched my spot. And to make matters worse I could hear her crunching happily away behind me as if to rub it in.
The next day I showed up an hour earlier and sprinted up the stairs and past the many rows of books to my EMPTY desk. I was going to do a little victory dance but then I remembered the camera in the corner and decided to do all my celebrating internally. And boy was I! Unfortunately, the little Asian thief never showed so I was deprived of the excessive gloating I had planned for her
Today, however, was a different story. I showed up at 10am and the smiley Doritos chick was back in my spot. So once again I sat in front of her and seethed for a good twenty minutes before I could get into my story. So tomorrow I plan to show up early again. I might even bring some fart spray. Oh yeah, and maybe some gooey yellow slime that I can spread all over the desk. That's it! I'll pretend to be really sick, sneezing and coughing and farting. Then I'll cover the desk in slime!
Doritos chick is going down!!
posted by Grant-Will-Rant at
7:54 PM
5 Comments:
OH MY GOD! You're writing for 7 hours a day, every day?! I will not let anyone ever call me productive again. You easily, hands down, without a doubt, take that golden trophy.
By
Anonymous, at 4:12 AM, June 23, 2005
Let me clarify: that's Mon-Fri. Saturday the library is closed and Sunday it's open from 1-5. So the weekend is usually reserved for outlining and mapping out the world of my story.
I'm treating writing like a job this summer. Clock in at 10, leave around 5 or 6. I take a twenty minute break to eat a sandwich. Lately I've been averaging 1,000 words a day, which for me is really good.
At this point I'm sitting on 17,000 words. And I'm planning on the story coming to around 60,000 words, which I figure is an acceptable length for young adult fiction. The first Harry Potter was 77,000; The Giver was 43,000. Mine will be something in between.
By
Anonymous, at 8:29 AM, June 23, 2005
You both make me sick.
:-P
By
Anonymous, at 10:10 AM, June 23, 2005
If you're as wildly successful as Rowling, you're going to establish an artist commune and give me a lifetime membership.
p.s. Good for you. But at 1000 words a day, will you finish by the end of the summer?
By
Anonymous, at 4:44 PM, June 23, 2005
As of today, I have exactly sixty days left before I begin my student teaching.
Tomorrow I'll hit the 20,000 word mark, and since my goal is 60,000 words, I just might be able to pull it off.
The only bump in the road is the 12 days I'm taking for the New Orleans trip, not to mention the possible jury duty. But I plan to do some writing somewhere between Cali and Louisiana, so we'll see :)
By
Anonymous, at 7:02 PM, June 23, 2005
Post a Comment
<< Home