Work schedule

Why is it so difficult to stick to a writing schedule? Many accomplished writers have sworn by the schedule that brought them success. Some do writing as the first thing in the morning. Some write when everyone in the house has gone to sleep. There are some who retreat into a secluded spot to write. There are of course some who write whenever the inspiration strikes. The mood becomes important. The muse when it visits must find a congenial time to whisper in the ear. But if you put it to vote, most people swing in favor of a schedule, a regimen to follow. Stare at the blank page, if you must, say the die-hard schedulers, but keep at it until the words come out. Stick to a schedule, they urge you, no matter how many times you have to stare at a blank page, or for how long. For if you lisp for words, the words must come. 

It is not that I don't have anything to write. I am working on some writing projects that are in various stages of completion. From an idea for a story at one end of my writing spectrum to a finished manuscript at the other, I am sufficiently covered from boredom and consequently the distraction that it entails. And yet I often find myself doing anything except being immersed in my project work. Why? Some say it is the lack of a schedule that is keeping me from working while some others say that I am too lazy. I think the truth of the matter swings more towards my supreme indolence, which I cherish and share with many masters of the craft of writing, be it fiction or software. A schedule would be actually a hindrance for someone who likes to work when he pleases and laze around when he is not writing. I don't usually get bored, though. Lazy people seldom get bored; boredom is the hangover of workaholics. 

It is not that I haven't tried scheduling my work. I have always been a believer of organized work. I have drawn a work timetable so many times that I can churn it out in a matter of seconds. I have become adept at it. I have a few apps to help me come up with a beautiful schedule to keep me working from morning till night. I also set reminders to help me stick to the schedule. The reminders include audible alerts, screen notifications and email messages. I have always set multiple alerts to ensure that I don't miss my tasks. I spent hours looking for scheduler apps; many don't come even close to what I need, but I don't give up my hunt for the right one, one that matches my temperament, my mood swings and my innate inability to stick to a schedule. 

I think what I need is a prime mover, the motivator, that urges me to set to work. It could be money or a muse. When there is neither in sight I look around and lose focus. I feel disoriented. I kick the schedule and return to chaos, the sweet nothingness of a vacuous mind. A mind that spins the web of imagination of characters and events, of ideas and plots, of story lines and synopses. But nothing gets done until the muse returns, or there is a chance of making some money.