I can't tell you how many stories of creative people I've read, and to a one, they all say that they work at their creative projects every day, day in and day out, no matter what. Come heck or high water (which we've had quite enough of in central Indiana lately, thank you very much), famine or flood (again...), they get to the computer or tablet or easel or typewriter and they work.
Me, I'm not that good. I try to be, honestly, but ... well, I'm not. No matter what I try, I get times throughout the year where I go for a day or a week or more with almost no creative work. They're not exactly "droughts," because it's not that I don't have ideas, I just don't have time. Case in point -- I'm just now emerging from a period of about six weeks where I did next to no composing (at least not on anything other than an 8-measure bell processional or something like that). It started after my car accident on March 7 and lasted clear up until we left for our vacation, then the whole week we were gone, and then a good couple of weeks when we got back. All in all, six weeks with pretty much no forward progress on composing.
I will say, I do feel blessed that when these times happen, I don't panic. I've been through times like this before, and I know I will again, and after every one, I've always been able to compose again. Now, that's not to say I like it, but I know it's not a new standard state of affairs.
Even when I'm not working, I am at least thinking about my composing: the pieces I need to work on, ideas for new pieces, planning and plotting the order I'll work on pieces. The subject of composing is never far from my mind, even if the actual time to work is conspicuous in its absence.
What does amaze me every time, though, is how easy it is to get back in to the work. It's a bit tricky to jump back in to the middle of a project, but getting into the process again is remarkably easy. It always seems to me that going back to something like composing ought to be like trying to hop back on a bicycle after a long absence -- wobbly for a bit, then a bit more confident, and finally getting right back to where I was before I left off. Instead, it feels more like slipping on an old glove or thread-worn cardigan: immediately at home and comfortable.
In fact (I prepare to speak heresy here) I sometimes find my composing is better when I come back from an absence like this. I miss the work while I'm away, true, but the time spent on introspection and getting a good, deep feeling for the pieces helps make the final products better in many cases. That's not to say I'm advocating taking frequent breaks from your creative work, just that getting back to the work is usually not as hard as we fear it will be, and taking a working hiatus for a small amount of time can sometimes help make the work better in the long run.
Here's hoping that your creative work is flying along, and that if you're not working, it's of your own choice, and not because life has gotten in the way.
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