In the midst of writing the latest installment of the Seefer Elliot Continuum, I got very frustrated with the direction of the story. I knew how the next episode would end, but not the story after it. Even more so, how that story would lead into the next novel. The whole thing was put on hold until I figured it out. I want the pieces to fit together (a problem I'm starting to realize in my plan to slowly unveil parts of Continuum).
I started finishing the illustrations for another book I shelved for a long time. This turned out to be a good thing. I will be able to send this book to an editor soon. This still did not remedy the problem I was having with Seefer, though.
Then one magical thing happened this week. I mowed the lawn. No writing. No drawing. No anything related to books. I just started up the tractor and cut some grass. About 15 minutes in, I had a Eureka! moment. The missing hook, the essential element, that I had been beating myself up to find came right into my head. Maybe it was the excessive vibrations. Maybe it was the smell of the freshly cut blades tickling my nostrils. Maybe it was my mind being focused on something else entirely. I don't understand the science about it. Whatever it was, I'm glad I mowed the grass that day.
From this, I draw one important conclusion. Mowing your lawn may be the cure for writer's block.
