@DreamsInPixels Hope the cat heals well--that is a top priority. And I hope the dentist goes ok.
Are you interested in possible approaches?
Here's a few you could try:
You might try carrying a notebook around with you (especially if you also have a pen that you love to write with!), and then when you have odd moments, like while you're sitting with the cat or waiting at the dentist, you could write a little bit: an outline, a brief scene, a snatch of dialogue, random thoughts about the characters or the plot. That will provide material you can use when you're able to return for a longer stretch of writing.
Another approach I often try when my other priorities leave little time for writing is to sneak in bits on my draft: even just 15 minutes can be enough for me to write a few hundred words or so, and then if I do that for a few days, I'll have a good start on the draft when I have more time for writing.
This also seems like a great opportunity to pattern-break: circumstances are set up so that you could, if you wanted, stop the story. Circumstances have given you all the excuses you need. Yet, it's possible to shift this! (And here's where it gets exciting...)
Sometimes, in order to keep going with a longer work, we need to figure out how we will keep up with it when: the car has a flat, the sink breaks, the doorknob falls off the door, we catch a cold, our husband/boyfriend needs a little extra support or TLC, we get a new job, we move to a new house, we just don't feel like it, and it's raining. Or sunny. Take your pick.
So, you can look at this week's circumstances as the universe giving you an opportunity to shift things around: this is a chance to find that you have it within you to either find new ways to write in the midst of inconvenience and other demands or to find that you can take a break when life asks you to, and still return to the story later. Or, even both of these (continuing in spite and returning with strength).
What are your thoughts, feelings, and responses?
