When I start a project that I’m really passionate about, I can’t do much else until it’s finished.  I’ll sit down at my computer and stare at the words until they wiggle.  Even if I can’t make the magic happen, the project is swimming around in my mind.  When I’m cooking dinner or taking a walk, I’ll be talking to myself as I sort through plot holes or dialogue.

The best and worst time is taking a shower.  Inevitably, some new inspiration hits me, and I find myself running out of the bathroom wrapped in a comfortable blanket, sliding into my seat and furiously vomiting the words into a blank document, just so that I don’t lose them.

Sometimes the obsession is fleeting.  A few hours of furious writing that leaves me exhausted in the best possible way.  The end product is rough and ugly, but it’s there.  The words are on the page, and there is magic happening somewhere between the lines.

Other times, the obsession is all-consuming.  For days or weeks, all I can think about is what I’m writing.  And those times when I have to do something else, all I want to do is finish what is in my mind.

Sometimes I can write through the obsession.  Take the ideas that are dancing in my mind and carefully tuck them to the side until I can return to them.  Other times, nothing else will flow until those words are gone.

The more I write, the more I discover about my own creative process.  And then comes a day when something happens and it all changes, and I’m left wondering why the muse has suddenly had a change of heart.  One day, I’ll require loud music blaring.  The next, nothing but utter silence will do.

The best times for me to write are late at night.  The boychild is often asleep or busy playing.  The husband has settled in for the night to play games or watch tv.  Dinner is done, laundry is dry, and I can finally let my mind wander and the words come.  I can force it during the day when I have to, but I prefer to write late at night.

It can be frustrating, when the words in my head aren’t the words that I need.  But like it or not, this is part of the process and one of the many things I love about writing.