Are you familiar with the cuckoo bird? When it's time for the mother cuckoo to lay her egg, she hides among the bushes, waiting, watching for other mother birds to leave their nests. When she spots a mother bird leaving her nest to find food, the cuckoo flies to the nest, lays her egg, and leaves. When the baby cuckoo hatches, it wobbles around in the nest, pushing the other baby birds or eggs over the edge. This ensures that the baby cuckoo is the only one left to feed when the mother of the other birds returns. It's brutal. It's cruel. It's heartless. And it's just what that new something does to my creativity.
Sometimes finding the baby cuckoo of my creativity helps me get back on track. But identifying the little jerk isn't easy. Am I being distracted by a new game I've gotten into? Am I thinking about a girl? Am I hungry? Am I concerned that I'm dreaming about banging faulty grenades against hard surfaces to make them blow up? It could be none of the above. The dumb thing is it could also be all of the above, i.e., a girl that's distracting me with a new game when I'm hungry and also asleep, dreaming about banging faulty grenades against hard surfaces. That's the only way I can rationalize it.
Of course, writer's block doesn't have to be caused by something blind, naked, and ugly, like the evil cuckoo demon-bird-baby from hell (I decided to add some adjectives. What kind of baby kills other people's babies?!). It could be something awesome or beautiful that's just so good, it distracts from the task at hand. For example, it could be a new game you just got into. It could be a girl. It could also be a dream about trying to blow up grenades that just won't blow up. Who cares if they do, you're asleep and you can't die. How awesome is that? See what I did there? Two different points of view for the same problem. I'm a freakin' genius.
Sometimes the best way to deal with a problem is to use the problem against itself. Like what I'm doing here: instead of being a pee pants about my literary inhibition, I'm making it the source of my creative awesome. Do you have problems that you're stressing over? Try this approach. It might work. Okay, let's say that your in-laws are over at your place. Big problem. You hate your in-laws. They're always talking about how your husband/wife was better off before you got married. Also, they hate your new hair cut. Don't worry. All you have to do is get them to start talking about themselves. Ask them about their dog, Mufasa. Didn't he have some problem with his whatever? So how is he now? Oh my, you had to get him neutered! I would not like to be in his position. Yes, I can understand why that would make you feel terrible. How could you not? You basically just shot Mufasa's legacy in the jewels!
See? You got them to talk about themselves, completely forgetting you in the process. Of course, if you have a really good relationship with your in-laws you won't have to try this. And if you do, you came up with the idea on your own, you understand? Note: I would like to apologize to any in-laws who might have been offended. I'm not married, so I don't have any, but in case you read this after I marry your daughter, you have my sincerest apologies.
So, what do you do when the baby cuckoo pushes your creativity babies out of your nest? Do you pout and stomp away like a little girl (I'm not being sexist...that's just what little girls do...)? Do you man up and kick your creative block in the ass (I'm not being sexist...that's just what men do. That's why we say man up...)? Note: I would like to apologize to any girls who might have been offended while reading this paragraph. There is no way I think guys are superior to girls. That would be silly! That would be like saying a king is superior to a queen, or that the father is the head of the family, which, of course, is untrue and absurd. I'm not married, but just in case my future wife is reading this, you have my sincerest apologies, my love. I'll make you a candlelit dinner with wine to make up for it.
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