PUBLISHER'S PAGE
Like Sands Through the Hourglass...
by Debi Orton
I've wracked my brain for the past several weeks to find a topic I could write about for this issue's Publisher's Page, but to no avail. The truth is that I've been working non-stop now for about four months, and it's left me with precious little time or energy to think about anything else. I'm sure there are many people out there who can commiserate, although they probably don't have time to read literary journals – even flash literary journals.
In my case the answer is obvious. I need a vacation. I haven't taken a formal vacation in more than ten years, and I'm going to remedy that oversight next month. Because of that, flashquake will be on hiatus from December 9 through the 22nd. You can go ahead and send in submissions, but your submission won't be processed or acknowledged until after I return.
Why do we humans complicate our lives so? In this age of technology five minutes alone, in silence, seems impossible to find. For a writer, this frenzy of stimuli can be one of two things: a fertilizer, stimulating creative ideas, or a dissonant cacophony that prohibits independent thought. Or even more frustrating, it could be that first choice – eminently stimulating – without time to act on the creative impulses inspired.
Natalie Goldberg once spoke of being so poor that she stood in a bank and did her ten-minute timed writing with a chained-down pen on the back of deposit slips. I can't imagine that myself, but I can adapt the lesson to my own life. The object is to write...period. In whatever circumstance you find yourself, take that time for yourself and your vocation.
When I compare myself to my flashquake compatriots, I feel like a slacker. Three of our editors — Barbara Jacksha, Didi Wood, and Vanitha Sankaran — have completed novels this year. Art Director Roger Paris is flourishing in his second career as a visual artist. Barbara and this issue's guest editor Lori Romero are embarking on their own adventure with the new literary journal, Cezanne's Carrot (lucky for me, Barb will be sticking with flashquake, too).
You would think that with all that creativity sparkling around me, some of it would rub off. Knocking off this column for the Winter issue of flashquake should be a piece of cake. But my batteries are drained, and it's not. I know when it's time to get up and walk away. For any of my other projects, I'd know I could come back and pick it up later when I'm feeling fresher. That's not going to work this time. The deadline for this issue is looming large, and it's time to let it go.
If you're a creative person, I'm sure you've been there. There are days when it just won't come. If you try to force it, you'll just end up hating what you've made. Personally, I think you've earned the right to call yourself an artist – or a writer – when you learn to accept that reality.
My name is Debi, and I'm a writer. I've taken that first step.
Please take a few moments during this season of giving to do something to help someone less fortunate than you. It doesn't matter who, and it doesn't matter how, but just do something that will matter to them.
Happy holidays, everyone!