I take my weekends on other days...

[lagilman]

Having finished a project and sent it off to be torn apart commented upon by my Occasional Muse, I woke this morning thinking thinky thoughts about the next project.

Apparently, however, those thinky thoughts (once I confirmed that the research material I needed was indeed available at the NYPL yay NYPL) required me to scrub down the kitchen in order to reveal themselves. Positive displacement FTW.

And lo, the kitchen is now sparkling and scrubbed (down to the inside of the toaster) and I have a page of character notes and a sensation that this is going to be one of those stories that eats my heart with sharp, slow bites. Which is good, right? Right? right. sigh.

Commencing work on "The Rat King" in 9...8..7...

EtA: oh yeah. Nick Cave's The Boatman's Call is the opening soundtrack on this one.


Okay, fess up: How many of you out there practice Willful Positive Displacement? Y'know, the "I need to think about this but I can't think about this yet so I'm going to go do something otherwise distasteful so the thoughts will come rescue me" thing?

Comments

[nycdeb.livejournal.com]

I frequently practice Willful Positive Displacement though I didn't know it had a name until now. For some reason, I picked up the phrase "letting the coffee clear" somewhere and I called it that. This, despite not knowing why coffee would have to clear. I wish I could remember where I saw that.

[threeoutside.livejournal.com]

Oh, absolutely! In fact, I was going to quote that part of your post and comment: Isn't it funny how the Writing Genie seems to be in cahoots with the Household Goddess of Clean? (Yeah, there is a Household Goddess of Dirty, too, and it's a pretty well-matched battle, at least in my house.)

I, too, woke up with a story going through my head, some offshoot of a poorly-remembered dream. This is amazing, because I haven't written anything for years. And here's this story, and there are those characters, and that setting...very odd. Must go write...

[house-draven.livejournal.com]

If I did that, I'd be unable to hold the idea thoughts in my head. For me, I just sits and thinks. Unless it's pure backbrain stuff. Then I have a subliminal tape I listen to and then go about my business. The Eureka! will often come that day,may come in a week,but I've found it works well.

[ramblin-phyl.livejournal.com]

Okay, fess up: How many of you out there practice Willful Positive Displacement? Y'know, the "I need to think about this but I can't think about this yet so I'm going to go do something otherwise distasteful so the thoughts will come rescue me" thing?

Raising hand. I get some of my best ideas while cleaning the oven.

[chickwriter.livejournal.com]

WPD? All the time. I've been rearranging furniture/assembling new furniture for the past month. ::g::

A friend of mine has been known to recaulk her tub.

Perhaps it's necessary behavior? I hope...

[http://users.livejournal.com/la_marquise_de_/]

I own up. I do a lot of cleaning and ironing that way. ANd writing reviews, which I do not enjoy but still feel the need to do.

[desperance.livejournal.com]

Toasters have insides? Lawks...

[lagilman]

well, toaster ovens do...

[jhetley.livejournal.com]

You don't wanna look at the inside of ours . . .

[matticrafts.livejournal.com]

I didn't have a name for the syndrome. It works about 50/50 -- I use it for costume thinking, too. Sometimes I just have a finished house task. Sigh.