If Flannery could do it…I can do it.
“Every morning between 9 and 12 I go to my room and sit before a piece of paper. Many times I just sit for three hours with no ideas coming to me. But I know one thing. If an idea does come between 9 and 12, I am there ready for it.” -Flannery O’Connor
This morning I am back at work … or trying to be. I found this quote in Barbara Abercrombie’s A Year of Writing Dangerously, and it helps to think of the great Flannery O’Connor staring at a blank sheet of paper, too.
Such a sensible woman. I bet she wore sensible shoes (for various reasons). I love her–the stories, the straight-on comments, and her letters, collected in The Habit of Being, a phrase I have taken on into my own life. Thank you.
Kathleen, I checked out The Habit of Being so many times at my college library, that a librarian suggested I buy my own copy, which I did. Her writing book Mystery and Manners is a must read, too. Well, you no doubt have it.
Don’t worry if the ideas don’t come to you right away. I’m sure Flannery O’Connor had the same trouble. All writers do. Good luck.