What's your writing process like?

No really, what's it LIKE?

Process questions can often be answered practically: I write in the mornings, I write all night, I draw on paper, I draw on an iPad, I draft in a notebook, I draft on my laptop, I listen to music, I don’t listen to music, I procrastinate, I freewrite, I fold the laundry. (I’ve written practically about process in a previous post.)

But it feels more expansive to think metaphorically about process. To conjure a clarifying comparison. What’s my process LIKE? That’s an invitation to a simile. A ‘shooting star’ was the first thing that came to mind, and I enjoyed following its weird and illuminating logic.

I should admit that I’m feeling fondly about the creative process because I don’t really have a process at the moment. Or maybe I should say a project. Or time. My current focus is on professoring and book-promoting. The semester started two weeks ago, and my graphic memoir, The Keeper, comes out one month from today. Most of my time now is spent on course prep, grading, and drafting some talks I’ll be giving about the book and Title IX. Which is all exciting, but a girl needs to draw! This post may be the most creative thing I’ve done in the last two weeks. I could feel myself getting cranky about that, and it was really nice to spend some time drawing birds and shooting stars.