One of these days I'm going to dedicate a book to Freecell

[pbray]

Occurred to me recently that writing has much in common with Freecell. There are times when I am unbeatable in Freecell, where I win game after game. A single glance at the layout then I start clicking cards, not planning my moves but somehow comprehending the whole board and knowing that I've got it.

Other times I lose game after game, or win one and then promptly lose the next three. Even the simplest of games can be lost in these times, and it's only when the computer tells me I've lost that I realize what I should have seen before. At these times I'm incredibly frustrated since I know I'm better than that, but somehow I can't figure out how to get back on track.

Needless to say I prefer the days when I am a Freecell Master.

Writing is a bit like Freecell, in that there are days when I am absolutely on top of my game, and days when I am incapable of stringing together a dozen sentences.

No real conclusions here, except that I'm currently in the middle of an extended winning streak in Freecell, and hoping the good vibes translate over to my writing this weekend.

Comments

[digitalred93.livejournal.com]

My Gods! I can't believe someone else suffers from the same FREE CELL/WRITING MENTALITY that I do. When I'm stuck in my writing, I'll play some freecell but until I win a game, even if I try to write more, I just can't do it. I have to win a few games, in fact, in order to feel confident.

[pbray.livejournal.com]

I'll even play when writing. Sometimes when I'm stuck in a scene or can't find just the right words or phrase, I'll jump over to the Freecell window for a few minutes, and then when I switch back to the wordprocessor I know what I need to do next.

It's been explained to me as a left brain/right brain phenomenon, where writing is a right brain activity, while card playing is a left brain activity. Engaging the left brain by playing cards gets both hemispheres of the brain involved which promotes problem solving.

[aeriedraconia.livejournal.com]

"there are days when I am absolutely on top of my game, and days when I am incapable of stringing together a dozen sentences."

I'm really glad you said this because I was complaining to myself about this very thing yesterday.