[flickr id=”6367108607″ thumbnail=”small” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]You work diligently on a piece. At times you’re almost frantic.

You edit. Refine. Perfect.

You send it off into the world.

Breathe a sigh of relief.

And freeze.

What next?

You have to wait.

Sometimes it’s days, others it’s months or even years (I waited almost 2 years for a reply on a full before throwing in the towel – not without hesitation and sadness).

What next?

Sure they tell you to dive into the next thing.

It should be that easy.

Unless you know – the wait is only a couple of weeks.  Maybe a month.

When you’re waiting for each email alert.

It’s easy to get distracted.

Facebook.  Twitter.  Blog posts. Real life.

Sleep.  Oh, sleep is beautiful.

No beating yourself over the head to write, or edit, to make each sentence shine.

You miss it – but oh the break is nice.  It’s only a few weeks anyway.  Who cares if you take a break?

Except you miss it.

The break is stupid.

But how can you write when you’re distracted by email alerts? Facebook games (just ONE more quest…then I’ll write. Oh, wait – that quest is easy, one more. I swear it.).

It’s time to regain focus.  Time goes too slow when you’re waiting on word.

It’s best to get lost in a new world.

Meet new friends (i.e. Characters).

How do you do it?  What tricks do you use to regain focus?

Me? Well, I’m dropping my Facebook games. I don’t need them clogging up my feed anyway.  I’ll just keep one game that doesn’t clog my feed and takes forever to regain lives.  That means I need to focus and get back on my schedule. I have plenty more stories in my head that need to come out.

But just one more quest before I quit…

Just one….