Artists are frequently working on more than one project at a time.
I currently have multiple writing projects underway.
Every weekday I create a blog. Mondays are specifically about Positivity, Wednesdays are Pathwalking, and Fridays (or Saturdays) are about the craft itself. I also am posting other articles for the rest of the week, usually in the realm of conscious reality creation and mindfulness.
Additionally, I am working on The Void Incursion. I have started another potential sci-fi story (I am doing something I seldom do – planning and plotting multiple aspects in advance). I am also awaiting the return of Critical Position from the editor – and editing another piece I did as a one-off novel publication.
There’s more, too – I really should get back to Harbinger and complete my edits of the third Source Chronicles novel so I can send it to an editor.
I can’t deny that’s a lot. I do wonder sometimes – is this just too many projects?
The answer lies with me
Only I know what I am capable of or not. So, if I have taken on too much or if I am feeling overwhelmed – I have my answer there, don’t I?
I know, generally, how much I can and cannot handle at any given time. By-and-large I can judge when I have too many projects on my plate.
Some of the work I do is for my freelance gigs. That’s a different animal, as it has a different deadline and set pay. All of my other deadlines, as a self-published writer, are my own.
The thing that is most important to this is that it brings me joy. I love the work I am doing and writing makes me happy. Even editing, though it can be an occasional cause of paralysis, still feels good.
Admittedly, it has taken me a long time to find the appropriate balance. For years, I had a bad habit of taking on too much, and getting too overwhelmed to complete my work. But time has tested my process, and I know better what I can and can’t handle.
You, I have no doubt, can also work on this. It’s a constant work in progress because the amount can change. Some projects absorb more of your time and energy than others. Also, opportunities unexpectedly arise that can change your deadlines, timing, and necessities.
Creativity is an ongoing thing
As a creator, whatever your art may be, the process is ongoing. Seldom do I find I don’t have some idea or other.
Many are just that – ideas. A concept that may – or may not – get into my head and then need to be placed elsewhere. Some are just scenes, notions, or larger concepts to be applied to another time and story.
For example – I recently finished watching the animated series The Clone Wars. While it put certain aspects of the Star Wars prequels into a new context (and improved on it somewhat), it also sparked an idea.
What happens when you create millions of clones – and the war you made them for has ended? Now what? Do they remain soldiers – or what happens to them?
This does get at least partially addressed in the Star Wars Universe (I am working my way through Star Wars: Rebels currently). Unfortunately, I don’t have the connections to get licensed to write a Star Wars story.
But the idea of clones goes well outside of Star Wars. I have an idea to follow-up on my concept and make a story from it. This, FYI, is the other sci-fi story concept mentioned at the beginning of this essay.
Two sci-fi stories – and, someday, I really should continue working on Guardians (book 4 of The Source Chronicles). To me, that does seem like a lot of variable projects – but then there are authors out there doing far more and churning out new books quarterly or faster.
Multi-media projects
For artists who work in more than one medium, it makes a lot more sense to have many projects ongoing. If you’re a writer/photographer/painter/woodworker, for example, you could have a variety of each of these projects happening.
Sometimes, you are focused on one thing, sometimes another. My freelance job has had me doing a ton of work in WordPress on the company website. I am learning a LOT from this. In fact, because of all I am learning, I have used it to alter and improve MY websites.
All the various projects you do make you, you, and allow you to tap into your creativity and to make your art, whatever medium it is in. So long as you are feeling the energy of your work, and the process is bringing you joy, then you are not taking on too many projects.
The line between many and too many projects
When all the projects on your plate overwhelm you and make you feel anxious, upset, and unfocused – that likely means you have too many projects.
This takes on a different meaning for every individual. Some may get depressed, others anxious, still others angry – and you may feel all of these and more, altogether or at variable increments.
What do you do when you have too many projects?
The key is to prioritize. Lay them out, see what they all are (I know from my own experience that sometimes I am not fully clear on how many projects I have, nor how involved/complex/difficult they may be). Once you can see what they all are, you can determine what to work on, what to put on hold, and even if a project should be discarded.
I may be a Virgo, and have occasional anal-retentive hyper-organized moments – but – I am also an artist, and prone to scatterbrain. It’s easy for me to get distracted and disorganized. Most of the other artist-types I know have the same issue.
This is why it’s good to step back, see what all you are working on, and determine where your priorities should be. This can also help to reclaim your joy and to reinvigorate your art.
What’s more, it may open you to more ideas, too.
Artists are frequently working on more than one project at a time – and you alone know when you reach too many. Keep at it and create more amazing things to share with the world.
Thank you for taking part in my ongoing journey. Thank you for joining me, and for inspiring me and my art.
This is the sixty-fourth article exploring the creative process. Please take a moment to check out the collection of my published works, which can be found here.
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