The Battle of the Twins

Gemini: an Air sign; ruling planet: Mercury

Read anywhere on the web about the traits of a Gemini and you’ll quickly learn Geminis are lively and talkative, restless and easily bored, charming and witty. We’re unable to concentrate on one thing at a time. We’re energetic and tend not to stick with something in order to master it.

Is this true?

Mostly, yes.

I’m a Gemini. I can atest to the fact that I’m easily bored. I need to be challenged and I need to multi-task. I need to be able to do a bunch of different things at the same time (read, write, tweet, listen to music, answer email, Facebook…). And as a Gemini, I’m often of “two minds” of things. That’s the Twins at war with each other. I see this translating into my writing.

I emailed one of my CPs yesterday to talk about one of my current projects. I told her it was hell being a Gemini. She can identify – she is one after all. At any one time, I feel myself torn between the projects I want to work on (especially when I’m between projects). One day I want to work on the space opera. The next I want to work on book two of my knight trilogy. Then the next I need to work on a short story for an anthology. And then the next day I want to work on a tie-in to the gladiator book I just sold.

So I find it difficult to focus on any one thing. I’ve also been trying to convert myself from a Pantser to a Plotter (but that’s a post for another day). Trying to teach myself this new skill is like trying to shove a round peg in a square hole. It’s just ain’t happening. I’ve been talking to other writers about this, too, to see what their process is and how they work. Jeffe talks a little about her process in this blog post (which I found to be similar to what my process is). But, again, that’s a post for another day and I’m talking about not being able to make up my mind, not how to plot. 😉

Perhaps we Geminis have more of a battle to get things done because our Twins are constantly battling for domination. One Twin wants the space opera…the other Twin wants the Knight story…and as for me? Well, I just need to pick something and stick with it. Easier said than done.