Reality bites

Almost two weeks ago my truck was totaled in a traffic accident. I stopped at a red light with one car in front of me. Two cars collided in the intersection and one of the them spun around the car in front of me and hit my truck. Of the three vehicles involved, mine was the only one towed from the scene. (I'm fine.)

I had only one payment remaining on the truck and was looking forward to the decrease in monthly expenses and the potential increase in savings.

So, I've spent much of the past 10 days dealing with the aftermath of the accident--dealing with insurance companies and shopping for a new vehicle being the most time-consuming. I had several editing and non-fiction projects in progress at the time of the accident and I kept all but one of them on-schedule throughout the past ten days. The other isn't due for two weeks and I expect to deliver it on time by giving it some concentrated attention in the coming weeks.

The impact of all this reality is that I've not written much fiction. It is difficult to be creative when reality bites you in the butt.

I learned years ago to deal with reality first and then return to writing. Sometimes I am refreshed by the break and sometimes I'm so glad to have whatever happened behind me that writing feels like a godsend.

So, it's time to look through my editorial calendar and the anthology calls that drifted in when I wasn't paying attention and start churning out the words again.