My house was invaded by an army of roofers early Monday morning. Here’s how much of a ruckus roofers make: I didn’t even notice yesterday’s 4.7 earthquake and its 100 aftershocks. The quake was lost in the din of men with tools who were prying off the top of our home like an F3 tornado. Our neighbour recently had an extension built and had one of those roofs fitted that you can get from Leka Roofs, when they fitted the neighbours roof there was hardly any noise at all, well from where we were that is, but I can’t imagine the few meters distance between our homes would make that much of a difference but clearly it does.
There’s a hidden opportunity in this interlude of mayhem, which will continue through much of the week. I’m having lots of time to ponder the folly of certain things. For example, I’m pondering the folly of ignoring an ailing roof for ten years. Sooner or later, a roof will let you know it’s terminally ill. Usually it will deliver the news in the middle of a major thunderstorm. Often, homes in areas of Texas that sit in Tornado Alley may experience storm damage requiring the services of the likes of roofing austin professionals to rectify.
I’m thinking it might be beneficial to apply the lessons of preventive maintenance to the writing biz. Do we have any creative shingles that are coming loose? Is there a minor but annoying leak that could develop into a gully washer, if left unattended?
So between hammer blows this week, I’m doing an inventory of my own needed repairs, in terms of writing. So far I have identified the following areas in need of remedy:
Low productivity
Low productivity has been an issue for me for the last several years. If I don’t have a deadline, I don’t produce. For example, I’m writing this blog post at 3 a.m. Pacific Time. Enough said.
Laziness
See low productivity.
Web avoidance
For some reason I don’t like to update my author’s web site. It’s looking mighty stale these days. Time for it to get a facelift, I think.
Creative confusion
To be honest, I’m not quite sure where I’m going with my writing these days. I’m working on a new installment of my series: PLUS-SIZE HOMICIDE. But I keep straying off track to write in other genres. So far I haven’t liked the results, so those efforts have stayed in the drawer. I feel like I should commit one way or another.
Well, there are all my writing roof’s flaws, laid bare. What about you? Do you have any shingles in need of replacement? Hammer away in the comments!
Here’s one: In this new age of opportunity in the publishing game, it’s very easy to get TOO busy. I try to take a writing break once a week, and let the batteries recharge. I do catch myself cheating on this, and then have to slap my own face.
Ah, the Too Busy Syndrome! I am reminded of a picture you once posted in which you were typing on your laptop while walking on a treadmill. That is definitely Too Busy, lol!
I need it to rain more often.
Having just moved my wife, three kids and a great dane into a new home my to-do list is pages long. Somewhere, in one of these boxes, is my WIP.
If it keeps raining today I’ll be trapped indoors and maybe I can find it!
Randall, I live in California, where it seldom rains, so that wouldn’t work for me? But moving is one of life’s major stressors, so go easy on yourself!
I just submitted an article to WOW (Women on Writing) on a similar topic of writer’s identity crisis. I’m not near as far along the path as you, but experienced similar feelings last year as I tried to find my pace and identity with writing.
One of my favorite quotes was from Lora Freeman Williams with The Writer’s Life and Business Coach. She said, “Sometimes when we’re not cultivating our creative space, the ‘business’ of writing can really dry us up creatively. The focus on pleasing others with our writing or of making money from our writing can get us out of touch with who we are as writers and creatives.” I interpret that as: purposeful driven writing with an end goal can be a real joy-sucker sometimes. Wishing for that joy-infusion on all our dry spells!
Julie, that’s good advice to keep in mind! My periods of best creative activity have been intermittent, not seemingly driven by anything practical like a business plan. Not a good way to be, just seems to be the way I am!
Internet social media – giant productivity suck! Recharging – yes! Productivity lacking. I find when I get really stuck it’s easy for me to stall and get low on productivity – then I try to explain away the ensuing crash as needed recharge… but I’m having problems recharging too, because I feel like I need to be researching or checking something which leads to the internet and wham – productivity hell (with no actual recharge). If writing was the only thing going on right now – I think I could recharge and be more productive – but is has been really hard to squeeze in productive writing/editing time when it feels like those are my recharge and relax from everything else. Basically I think I need a proper motorcycle riding vacation. Does this mean my roof is collapsing in on my head. The sky is falling huh?! 😀
No, I think only my roof is actually collapsing, lol. You sound okay, perhaps just a touch of Jim’s Too Busy Syndrome! 🙂
We just replaced our roof after developing a new leak that stained the ceiling. It was overdue; we’ve lived n this house since 1980. So now we have a lovely white rolled tile roof, except trees are already dropping leaves on it. That means we need to get the trees trimmed. We also had to get the ceiling stain fixed, but fortunately, insurance covered that job. However, they also had to take down the wallpaper in the bathroom due to the leak, and I had them take down the…Oh, get to the point, already. One improvement necessitates another. Or, once the ball starts rolling, run with it. It sounds as though you need some focus to concentrate your energy. Otherwise one flounders in the Neverland of what should I write? Or, where is this career going?
That sounds like a gorgeous roof, Nancy! Yes, I know I do too much “navel contemplation,” as my dad would say! A renewed focus is absolutely the remedy.
I’m getting into that funk now since I just finished line edits for my WIP. I’m happier when working on a project. It gives me a goal. Now I also have to decide what to work on next.
Glad to see you published authors suffer from similar ailments as us mere mortals. Good.
Glad to oblige, Mark, lol!
I’m with Jim about taking time off. Because we love what we do, we convince ourselves that we can keep going 24/7, but time off can replenish the creative well. Maybe take a real vacation to reboot.
I just had roof damage from high winds. Very noisy & a worry for days. I feel your pain. Hang in there.
We are planning to move to a different house (in Anchorage Alaska it seems sinful to live in a house without an amazing view…and our suburban postage stamp has a great view of the multiple houses around us but nothing more…and not enough rooms to be comfy with our teens and adult kids) therefore the move. But alas after last year’s 12 feet of snow (twice the norm) combined with an entire summer of rain and the autumn’s heaviest windstorm in living memory (think class 4 hurricane for four straight days), while our house and trees were were still standing…albeit tilted westward… our roof took a beating that hurt the shingles in a way that hurt like hurting something you don’t want to hurt more than a little hurt…but it hurt more than that.
Therefore, while we still plan to move I may have needs to create a new roof surface and loathe the knowledge of what that may do to my writing, let alone my audiobook recording. Planning to put the repairs off till the last minute or better yet to put them off till I am out of the house maybe a new roof credit in the contract for the new buyers rather than interrupt my rather full recording/writing schedules.
Now…if only I could find a way to get rid of this pesky day job without losing said job’s regular income so I could just write and record and sleep (preferably with my wife still acknowledging I am her husband and love of her life) I would find this life very nice indeed.
Basil, we are now into Day 3 of the roofing army swarming our parapet. It is a huge job, I realize now. No wonder it costs an arm and a leg!
Around here “roof” is a 4-letter word. I live in an 1888 monster that has 3500 square feet of flat roof that has unzipped. I take on about 50 gallons an hour in a good rain.
Repair cost: $20K+
So, instead of writing, I bail. And I siphon. and I mop. And I swear. So, I haven’t been writing much lately. However, come the zombie apoc, I can build a sump out of a 5-gallon bucket and a hand-cranked aquarium pump. 😉
Terri
I don’t envy you. At least here in the arctic we can shovel piles of the wet away while it’s solid.
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I feel your pain, Terri. I have a cottage in New England with an ancient slate roof. Very pretty, but it would be prohibitive to try to replace it. So we patch, patch, patch. And keep our fingers crossed.
I’m so sorry that there was so much noise and ruckus while the roofing construction was going on! I can’t believe it was loud enough to mask an earthquake! I hope you all were okay, and that the roof wasn’t compromised during the quake. Were the roofers able to get the roof replaced in a day?
I had to re-read this post after I saw the comments, because I missed the part about the earthquake! I hope you were all okay. And I hope the earthquake didn’t affect the roofing project either. I’m sorry you had to deal with all that noise while trying to work, but I’m sure it’s proven to have all been worth it in the end! A new roof is always much stronger than an old one, that’s for sure!
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Coming from a writer’s mind, the re-roofing came like an army of men who are programmed to tear down your rooftop. This is the funny part that caught my attention. You are right when you mentioned that an ailing roof will tell you signs that it needs to be replaced. So, how is your new roof now? I can just imagine it shiny and new. If you will be encountering some problems with your roof in the near future, don’t hesitate to ask the help of the experts on this matter.
Terence Watthens