So when it comes to my recent activities, I have to say that lately - to my rather big surprise - I've managed to be relatively productive. I've managed to keep progressing with my tasks and projects, even though I wasn't sure that I would have enough time or energy to do them.
Indeed, ever since I started with my new job a year and a half ago, my thinking was that I wouldn't have it in me to do those artistic things that I had done before. I wouldn't be able to write anything bigger, let alone try some other activities that have to do with music.
Yet, over the last eight months or so, I have managed to prove myself wrong. It is possible to do all kinds of activities that have to do with writing and music, as long as you're motivated to do them and you're able to come up with ideas that have potential.
Music-wise, by far the biggest surprise has been that I managed to start playing piano again. I hadn't played the instrument for more than twenty years at all, so it was a huge surprise that I actually started practicing again and managed to progress rather fast too.
Indeed, if I'm able to do the math correctly and count all the songs that I've practiced, I've learned almost dozen songs already. These include themes and songs like 'La La Land', 'Pirates of the Caribbean', 'Macgyver', 'La Vie en Rose', Chaplin melodies and Bond movie themes too.
Not surprisingly, the biggest requirement with progressing with the instrument has had to do with persistence. You absolutely have to practice pretty much every day and spend at least an hour (two preferably) learning the songs and working with your muscle memory.
When it comes to writing projects, I have to say that so far - against my expectations - I have been at least somewhat pleasantly surprised with the progress too. Even though I haven't put in that many hours, I've managed to be somewhat consistent here.
Indeed, by that I mean is that I've tried to dedicate at least one day a week for my writing (gaming) project. I've usually spent my Sundays working on the 'World War 2 resistance story in France' and have managed to make some slow but steady progress here.
Project-wise, an important factor has been that on a weekly basis I've had to present my progress to a writing group online. This has more or less forced my hand and I haven't felt like skipping writing because I'd just feel to embarrassed to not show them anything new.
Progress-wise, at the same time, just because I've managed to go further here with the task, that doesn't mean that I'm guaranteed to finish it eventually. I've only reached the second act in the story (I think there will be five acts total) and have so much to do here.
Indeed, now that our protagonist has left the starting place (Paris) and has gone to countryside to look for clues about her family (joining the resistance), I have to come with solid story beats. It's not easy to keep the momentum going while introducing new stuff too.
In that sense, considering the project and its demands, it's pretty obvious that I have to keep my writing routine going. Just like with my piano practice routines, the only way to get better and to get further is to keep doing stuff diligently and not give up.
After all, when you think about the writing task as a whole, even though there are no guarantees, there are definitely no short cuts. Especially when you consider the creative nature of the process (not all about brute force), I have to keep going and hope for the best.
In that sense, in the end, I can only hope that I'll find the energy and the time to keep going. I hope I'll do that and will be able to finish the script in the next four to six months, because this is a long project and almost nothing about it can be taken for granted.
