I’m a Milk Dud Writer

Today I was looking at writer’s block, or at least production block. It’s something that I don’t usually struggle with as long as I have the five things I need when I want to or am trying to write.

• A room with the right temperature
• A good gel pen that makes writing easy
• Paper that gel ink won’t bleed through
• A table to write on
• A box of milk duds

Yes, I confess that I am a Milk Dud writer. A candy bar won’t do. Cookies or cake won’t do. M & M’s won’t do. Milk Duds are an essential finger food for me. I don’t really know why I have such a desire for chocolate mixed with corn syrup, a food that I suggest people try to avoid as a top evil food. But let’s look at the rest first.

5 Things I Need to Write

1. I need a room with the right temperature. Too hot and all I want to do is sleep. Too cold and all I want to do is sleep. Being uncomfortable makes me think about how uncomfortable I am, not about what I want to say. There might be a huge list of topics sitting beside me, but if I am not comfortable, I will want to sleep to avoid not being comfortable.
2. I need a good gel pen. Most of my articles both on websites and in trainings started off with me putting my pen to a piece of paper and writing. I get to see changes, what has happened; what I have tried and what I has and hasn’t worked, even if those changes are scribbled through. On a computer I seem to always try to correct things right away. When I do that I lose nuances.
3. I need decent paper. To take notes on, I almost always prefer Moleskine notebooks, calendars, etc. Not because they are expensive but because the paper is of decent quality while still being thin enough to not take up inches in my backpack.
4. I need a table to write on. Lots of times I get inspiration from many different places. I can take notes on a computer or I can take them on calendar pages in my calendar. I don’t have a lot of appointments so it can take notes on the pages. This helps me keep tabs on when I was learning about what topic as well. Having a lap full of books, papers, notebooks and writing utensils just doesn’t work well for me.
5. I need a box of theater size milk duds. Since I am losing weight I keep hoping that one day the drive will be for a smaller box of milk duds. So far that drive for milk duds hasn’t really diminished. They are the perfect snack food. In a room with good temperature they aren’t sticky, damp or crunchy. They allow a burst of flavor that I enjoy.

The problem becomes when my common sense over rules my writing. I shoulda, coulda, woulda myself saying that, I am unreasonable. I should be able to give up the Milk Duds. I could lose weight much quicker that way. I would be happy to not have the corn syrup and other preservatives be a part of my journey to health.

But for some reason, I don’t find that is true in my life. For me to write more than a minimal article, I require Milk Duds, dripped in, one at a time.

Sometimes a treat is worth it. As a work tool, I guess it could be something much worse.