My name is Lise. And I'm a Procrastinator. Would that there was a 12 step program for types such as myself. Because no matter the urging, nudging, pushing, shoving, or outright bellowing that I am subjected to from well-meaning friends and relatives to get off my sorry tush and finish a writing project (and we mean finished - edited, polished, spic and span FINISHED) and send it out, I have not.
And for the 2nd time I am suffering a bout of gnashing, wailing, grimacing and grousing over being beaten to the literary punch.
In 2006 I completed a (very, very rough) first draft of a time-travel romantic thriller of a novel about Jack the Ripper. Never polished it or completed it in such a form as could be submitted (why? I get sidetracked by "new" and "exciting" projects, for one thing). But regardless, about a week or two after the 2006 NaNoWriMo challenge ended, I was in a bookstore and lo and behold, there was a TIME TRAVEL NOVEL ABOUT JACK THE RIPPER.
Granted, the premise was utterly different (and no, you cannot "steal" an idea since they are not protected by copyright) and it wasn't a romantic sort of novel (It was called, BTW, "Jack Knife"). It was a sci-fi time travelers setting history right rather than an "accidental" traveler trying to change history but failing - though she changes the outcome of something in the future. And it wasn't a romance like mine (lots of spice, and a quirky set of secondary characters leaving room for a sequel).
But there it was. A book on the shelf while mine was collected in a Barnes & Noble shopping bag. Color me disgusted. Could that have been why I put it aside? Maybe a part of the reason (if I'm not the first, why bother? Everyone will say I ripped off the idea!).
Meanwhile, I started another novel. It was planned to be an urban fantasy series with an accidental psychic who talks to ghosts. Snarky, some romantic entanglements and a whole slew of paranormal and supernatural characters. My planned first book was called "Dead Man Talking". I entered it in a couple of contests and actually got a third place in the RWA New York City Chapter's Love & Laughter contest. Did I finish it? Oh, silly girl!
I loved the plot. The characters were fun, and I had lots of research, ideas and chunks of writing from throughout the book. In fact I probably had a good 40,000 words. But done? Complete? Fini? Noooooo.
I did talk about it a lot, though (I'm looking at you - you know who you are). I shared the plot, the title, and my ideas and got wonderful feedback. Everyone thought it was going to be a great book!
Today, I'm in the bookstore (deja vu all over again?) and there on the shelf - a new paranormal by an established author ..... can you guess the title? Yep. "Dead Man Talking".
(And my MS? That's right, you guessed it: a Barnes & Noble shopping bag.)
Now, granted, this play on words is not particularly brilliant - it would come pretty easy if you thought about a ghost hunter novel title when there is a humorous bent.
But nevertheless, someone else now got there ahead of me.
And why? Because I PROCRASTINATED.
I failed to act when I had great stuff and energy and motivation. I got lazy, and despite the enthusiasm from others, let it slide. I sat around dreaming big dreams of publishing contracts, movie options and sequels and NEVER FINISHED THE FREAKING BOOK!
I've heard that some writers refuse to discuss current projects for fear they'll "jinx" it, or lose their enthusiasm if they talk about it too much. Others are obsessively worried that their ideas, titles, plots will be "stolen" by others and so stay mum about the details of projects.
Me? I just wait around until the great idea slips away and maybe takes root in someone else's mind. Or until someone else - as invariably happens, right? - comes up with the same or similar idea, plot, character or title.
So I have no one to blame but myself. Will this work as a kick in the butt to get me working? I sure hope so. We're approaching National Novel Writing Month 2009 - NaNoWriMo to the insiders - and it's the perfect time to put the cerebral pedal to the metal and get a project done.
Will I do it? There are some pretty intense folk rolling up their sleeves and getting ready to administer that kick in the butt if I don't.
Really, I'm serious, is there a Procrastinators Anonymous out there?
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