This is a short post for me for two reasons: first, I'm on the road, down in Coral Springs, Florida, where I have been attending the Coral Springs Festival of the Arts, a truly delightful way to spend a weekend, and the weather has been as close to perfect as I have experienced in a long time. Second, I've never been overly into lucky tokens or rituals. I like the concept, but few of them have ever worked for me more than once, so why repeat them every day, if you see my point.
One of my favorite sayings over the years has always been,
“You make your own luck.” I still believe it’s true. I don’t have a lucky hat,
or wear special socks or any of that stuff. I could lie and tell you that I’m
simply too mature or sophisticated for that, but I try to be as honest as any
fiction writer can be.
The simple fact of the matter is, I surround myself with
items that I can look at or idly toy with while I’m writing, and I listen to
music. The window in my office is closed and the blinds are drawn. No
distractions need apply. I can find plenty of those all by myself. I ignore
Facebook and the internet for at least two hours a day, those hours are when I focus on writing, rather than the business of writing. On really good days,
when I’m not doing the day job, I will aim for more time, but for me the luck
comes from the simple ritual of not allowing myself the luxury of not writing.
That, and looking at my really cool statues of various Marvel
and DC comics heroes and villains. What can I say, I’m easily inspired. Those things ain't cheap, by the way, and so I only allow myself to get one if there's one I really, really like and if I have sold a novel. It's a little way of bribing myself to behave.
What about the rest of you out there? What are your rituals,
and how well do they work for you?
James A. Moore
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