For the last few weeks I've been getting to know an old nemesis. If you had to name this entity it would diminish its power, so I will leave the name out for now. Let me just say that it sits on my shoulder and mumbles in my ear. Don't use that word; it won't work. Where is the transition here? No, that isn't it at all. When my nemesis has the upper hand I am wordless and unhappy.
Through the years I have assembled some ammunition. This blog, for instance; it flies beneath the radar screen. The nemesis lets it go. And sometimes in the morning I can work happily before the nemesis awakes. But long about midday it will set in with all its niggling, nagging power. Often I push through it. Sometimes I give up and do something else.
Looking in some writing books the other day I came across a passage that helps. It's from The Forest for the Trees by writer, editor and agent Betsy Lerner. "I won't say there's no such thing as a natural talent, but after working with many authors over the years, I can offer a few observations: having natural ability doesn't seem to make writing any easier (and sometimes makes it more difficult); having all the feeling in the world will not ensure the effective communication of feeling on the page; and finally, the degree of one's perseverance is the best predictor of success."
It's that last point that I cling to most. The nemesis doesn't like to hear it. The nemesis counts on my giving up. And so, just to spite it, I won't.