Harassment: Good or Bad?

So how do you guys feel about being harassed by friends/writers/both to keep on writing? Is it better if they ask about your progress? Does it help you? Does it make you not want to write?

And if it doesn't make you want to write — what does help? Is there any one thing that would make you shut up and write? Even if that something is rare and elusive [s]like a unicorn[/s]?

Typically it annoys me to no end, but it also flatters me. Clearly if someone is putting so much effort in to bother me about writing again, they actually like what I have written.

Other than that the only thing that can make me write is myself and my own personal drive to do so. Also, you know... inspiration is always a plus.

One Friday night after work some time last year, I let it slip that I was working on a novel. At the time I though it was fine, and no one really pressed the issue, so I just assumed no one was really interested, which was great.

But then I get to work on Monday and someone asks me how the novel's going. And I said I hadn't made any progress. At the time I had essentially left the thing to to die, so progress was very rare. But still, this one guy would ask me at least twice a week how it was going, and it got very annoying. I always felt like I don't want people to become involved in that part of my life, because it's my own private place to succeed or fail miserably, and when you're the only person concerned with progress you don't feel so bad about a lack thereof. I don't get paid for writing, so I'll do it at my own pace.

I have this one friend that keeps asking me about this particular story I'm writing, and I feel like such a chud every time he asks me. This is because I ranted at him how awesome it was going and that I couldn't tell him anything about it because I wanted him to read it unspoiled. At the time it was going great, then my life kind of changed drastically and it's been left to ferment. Sorry dude, I
ll get there yet.

It depends how my story is coming along, I guess. If I'm stuck in a block again, I feel even more pressured and then I kinda panic because I don't want to disappoint anyone in taking too long, and that kind of makes the block even worse.

OverEasy has a point, too - it is flattering sometimes to have people as how it's going, because it shows that they're interested and maybe want to know more.

But mostly, it just gets me into a whole lot of pressure and yeah ... makes it worse.

I haven't really found a "cure" that made me want to keep on writing. It's never really because of lack of imagination, because I have plenty ideas - it's more the fact that I have troubles forming my thoughts into good sentences/scenes and whatever.

Personally, I would probably rather cut off both of my hands then let anyone know I write. It just feels to personal to let people know. In fact, the only person I really let know about my writing is my boyfriend and he's never read anything of mine. He just knows and lets it be.

But I guess at the same time, at least at this point in my life, he has to be one of the few things that really make me want to write. Sometimes when he calls, he'll ask what I'm doing, and if I say either "writing" or "working" which he has come to understand are the same things, then he doesn't make the call long or he doesn't talk much and just keeps me company over the phone. So honestly, I want to write something great, dedicated to him. Now its just a matter of finding that inspiration.


*Stumbles outside to look for magical fairy of inspiration then remembers that it's snowing and tumbles back into the house.*

My family is always telling me to finish one of my stories and get it published. But the thing is, they have never read any of my work (until recently). I'm usually really private when it comes to my lovelies (hehe).

But it gets so annoying when my family keeps telling me over, and over again to finish something. "Stick with one story and finish it!" Gah! It is so annoying when they say that to me. They don't write so they don't know how difficult it is to write on something when the inspiration has left you.

Yet, it makes me feel good when they tell me to keep on writing. Especially after I've showed them one of my stories. That makes me feel good.

But mostly, I find the harassment rather annoying. I hate being pushed to do something by others. I'm the one who needs to do the pushing ^_^

Writing is something I've kept pretty private until recently. I still don't really share it much with my close family -- I think it's something about sharing private things with the people closest to me {and thus the people I depend on most, the people that could hurt me most} that turns me off and turns me to my friends instead. I kind of force some of them to read my poetry or help me edit my short stories, or just shove my laptop at them to make them read my new story.

However, I've never really gotten that kind of encouragement from them -- they don't bother me about any of my stories unless I bring it up first and I think I like it this way. This way, the writing is still mine and still my responsibility. I definitely think that if someone was badgering me about finishing something so they could read it, I'd come to view that particular piece in a negative light and it would probably die. D:

-Hannah-

For me, there's two, maybe three people who are allowed to ask me about writing. That's it. If anyone else does, I go all vague and noncommittal, and veer so far away from the topic you couldn't reach it with a ten-foot pole by driving 'cross country.

Those who are allowed to bug me are friends and fellow writers, and we rant, vent, complain, rave and share work as much as we can. If anyone else asks, I feel like I have to explain my entire poetical history, which they already know, as well as several other pieces I've written.

It's like being published in an anthology, I think. Just one poem, maybe two, and no context for understanding or ability to see references to how something has grown and changed. I think that's most of my aversion to even attempting to be published in an anthology -- my work's taken a turn for the plot-driven/sequential mode and I've now entirely deviated from the question!

So yeah. Only my few writer-friends are allowed to bug me. Otherwise I get cranky ^^

My sister hates me writing.


It helps me perfectly.