"Time Is On My Side" - Emotions, Projects, Music & Quotes

Becoming disinterested in something isn’t exactly a new prospect for me – more often than not, a writing project that starts off so full of promise and excitement usually dies a slow and painful death. All these grand plans of podcasts, video podcasts and other blogs never reach past the planning stages, the effort going into them always being more than I can handle. However, two projects of mine have seen the light of the day in “45 Days” and “Descent Into Madness”, living proof that when I put my mind to it and the stars align, something good can come of it.

For the last few weeks, it was no secret to those close to me that I had become nonchalant, complacent almost. Work was grinding me down, and in some ways it still is, but it was all becoming a bit too much. A corporate system that in mind neither rewards good performance nor punishes poor performance is one that I began having a hard time justifying working under. A structural system that didn’t benefit me, and with recent bad news of a job offer going south, my desire and passion were waning.

And then I hear a quote from Heath Ledger’s excellent Joker character – “When the chips are down, all the civilised people will eat each other”. It’s funny how a quote from an excellent movie – in this case, The Dark Knight – can get your gears turning and help get you out of a downward funk that you’re in. There are some things in life you cannot control – in this case, the actions and thoughts of those you work with. The system is how it is. No amount of crying, whinging, whining and frustration from my end will ever change that. It’s in place for a reason, whether I agree with it or not. I can dispute it quietly, I can scream from the rooftops, but the end result is the always the same.

How to solve the crisis I’m in then? Easy – I can’t change the system that I work in. I can however change the environment that I work in.

As luck would have it, I’ve been in contact today with someone in a completely new environment of work, a brand new medium. Unsure what the outcome will be, but I’m hopeful something will come of it. As soon as I hear anything more, I’ll let you guys know.

On the writing front, I’m juggling projects as always, trying to find my footing and where I want to head. I’d taken a week or so off of the creative grind to lay everything out on the table and see what I could do.

-          I have “Unsettling Differences”, my romance story with a twist that is ¼ finished, but features writing over a two year span. I’m continuing to chip away at it, but progress with definitely be slow on this one.

-          Then there is “When Justice Comes Calling”, which is still ¾ finished and currently being read over by a few people to see if I can salvage the project at some point in the future. A re-write from the ground up is the likely option, but if another option can be found, that could work as well. Playing the waiting game with this one.

-          Last but not least is my “Untitled Project” (Well, I have a title but I don’t want to spoil the surprise at the moment!) which I’ve written the opening chapter too. Still deciding on which avenue to go down with this “eye-opening, 4^th wall breaking drama”, but I have a good feeling about it. This will likely be the first of the three projects to eventually see the light of day. Toying with tense and writing stance at the moment to see which is most effective.

No rest for the wicked as they say.

As I’ve mentioned before that music is incredibly influential for me and my writing, please may I direct you to “Love Again (Nostalgia Remix)” by Pentatonix – a beast of a song that incorporates dub-step, a catchy hip-hop beat and some excellent chiptune (NES/SNES) for one hell of a song. Give it a listen.

I read a fantastic quote that I’m going to end today’s blog on, which opened my eyes in a lot of respects in what I want I do and where I want to be a year from now:

“Time has a mind of its own. Sometimes it crawls… Sometimes it flies… But it never stops. And it doesn’t wait for anyone.”

In the words of Bray Wyatt: “Time is on my side.”

As always, thanks for reading.

-          Will