Wednesday 5 September 2012

The blessing (and curse) of the magic coffee bean.


How long can I burn my brain like this?

Another week off work next week, and a perfect opportunity to get the majority of my next novella done.  I've already finished around a third of it and have a pretty concrete plan of the rest (although I like to add plot elements on the fly if they seem right), so I may even be able to finish the first draft.  It will however mean using more and more of the magic bean...
I've always been pretty sensitive to coffee (anyone who has ever worked with me will know it sends me a bit doolally) and when I had two weeks off in summer I relied on it to get me up at 5 am to start my daily writing stint, in the effort to get 3000 words done daily (most of them before my kids woke up).  It worked, but at a price.  I'm now re-addicted, and I mean that truthfully.  I love the buzz, the flavour is secondary (but still good).  I've recently looked into the properties of coffee for Shred, particularly its effect on blood flow, and was only partially surprised to see that it has the same addictive qualities as cocaine.  It also relieves pain by shrinking the blood vessels in the brain, which then expand if a constant supply of caffeine is withdrawn (as anyone who has tried to kick coffee cold turkey will attest).  What affects me the most though is the paranoia... I worry a hell of a lot more when I'm on the bean, also losing focus, which isn't great when trying to tightly plot a book.  All in all, it sounds pretty bad right?  It's pretty much a no brainer that I should kick the habit... but I also feel fired up, and get so many words out when I'm juiced up that I managed to write a whole first draft in 2 months. 
So will I bean up and try and finish Shred over the next two weeks, or lay off and give my body a rest? 
Time will tell...

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