Time Off

I was working on my new book this week and hit upon a problem, as you do. The answer wasn't coming, so I took myself away from the laptop for a few minutes to have a shave, and... 

Bingo! The solution appeared in mind, just like that. 

The week before, I had another issue which I just couldn't resolve. I went to bed, feeling annoyed and concerned, and... 

Kerching! I had the answer clear and obvious when I woke the next morning. 

Which brings me to the point of this blog. Writers just don't - perhaps can't - do time off. 

Whether it's shaving, or making up a cup of tea, or sleeping, or even taking an evening stroll around my beloved River Exe, and delighting in another of its sunset spectacles - 

Writers are always working, whether they like it or not. The brain never stops churning over characters, or plots, or whatever it is we happen to be focused upon at that moment. 

Even when I go for a couple of beers on a night out with friends, I take a notebook and pen, to write down the thoughts that come to me. 

Looking back on the ten years or so I've been writing, I can't recall a time when I wasn't thinking about it. 

Is that good or bad? It may sometimes be annoying for those around us, who get used to the sudden staring into the distance, not really here, thinking about something writing-related look. 

But for me, it tells me writing is a true love thing. We can never be apart, not even for a while.