Wednesday, May 03, 2006

Houston, I Have A Problem

I'm even going so far as to admit. I need a plan. I cannot stand having no plan. This new story idea, which is totally unplanned, is a lot of fun. However, I catch myself every hour or so trying to construct a plan for my new story. I cannot abide having something in my life that is completely unplanned.

For instance, I would like to go visit people back in the 'Dale. I thought graduation would be a good time to do that, however, my friend who thought she was going to be there decided she cannot make it so I'd rather not drive all that way. Anyways, what was my response to this issue? I automatically came up with another plan to go visit people and even had it timed out within 30 seconds of deciding not to go to graduation.

My plans are not just any old thing either. They're detailed and they're usually arranged in steps. I think it's just my personality combined with some mild obsessive compulsive tendencies. But every once in a while it would be nice to relax without any forethought as to what I am doing next. Writing a story with no expectations is fun, but difficult for me. Perhaps I should take this as a lesson and refuse to allow myself the luxury of planning.

You know what would be really funny? If, after all this effort, the story which I have not thought out ahead of time turned out better than the one I wrote with an elaborate plan in mind. Yeah, that would be funny.

4 comments:

Amber said...

I am the same exact way! I have to plan everything ahead of time, and I find it hard to spontaneously go and do something I hadn't planned on doing that day. I feel like if I have a plan, I am in control of what will happen, and I know everything will get done efficiently and properly. Sometimes I'm ok if I plan not to have a plan...but that's usually an avoidance of something or other that I want to procrastinate on.

Xana Ender said...

So, when you going to be up?!?:-)

Esther said...

Will you be around over Memorial Day weekend?

Xana Ender said...

yup, I'm helping with a wedding on Saturday. And probably a parade on Monday, but maybe I won't have to go:-)