Yesterday

...was a VERY good writing day for me. I invited my best friend round specifically for a day of writing. After a delicious lunch (BLTs crafted by moi), we settled down to write. Bestie was in my spare room on my PC, I was in the living room on the laptop. The overly long playlist I created for my WIP was on the stereo. It was perfect.

I wasn't tempted to stop and see what was happening on Twitter/Facebook/Hotmail/(insert distraction of your choice here). I wasn't tempted to read the paper (I'd already devoured The Guardian's Ten Rules for Writers), or watch Top Chef or read a book. I. Had. To. Write. That was the whole point of the day. And there was someone there to call me on it if I didn't.

The sound of Bestie typing at superhuman speed spurred me on. I was at a tricky stage of the WIP, so for me there was a lot of stopping and thinking and staring into space. But where I might have normally given up and gone and done something easier instead, I carried on. Because there was no other option. And I was enjoying myself - really, REALLY enjoying myself.

We stopped halfway through the afternoon for a cuppa and a biccie and a bit of 'How's it going?' chat. Bestie assuaged my doubts about the WIP - she's really very good at this. I should think about hiring her out to other stressed writers (for a hefty fee of course). Then we went back to work. Tap tap tappity tap. Or in her case, imagine more of a machine-gun sound (only more soothing).

When I reached a good point to stop, I did. This happened to be just after writing a section that gave me butterflies. All of a sudden I could see the possibilities ahead, and it was EXCITING again. I can't wait to get back to it. Not today though, as today is my Sunday of Doing Nothing.

So yesterday basically rocked. I think I'm going to try and incorporate this 'writing together' thing into my schedule on a regular basis. I may need to find some other writers to join in though, as Bestie actually has other things to do sometimes.

What do you think? Does the idea of writing together completely horrify you? Is writing a solitary pursuit as far as you're concerned? Is it lame that I sometimes need someone to hold my hand when I write? (Actually, don't answer that. And it would be really hard to type with someone actually holding my hand.)