My love for Mary Jo Putney grew exponentially this month when I heard her speak at RWA Nationals. She received the Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award and gave one of the best speeches about the writing life that I’ve ever heard. My favorite line? This one:

You don’t have to be crazy to be a writer, but it sure helps.

*Cue lots of knowing laughter.*

Ah, the writing life. It makes us all a bit batty even if we weren’t before. Why? Well for us planners it’s because we work things out in our heads (or our forrest-killing line of Post-It notes) and then this happens:

If you’re a freak like me that makes you do this:

But that never gets the job done, so I suck it up and make a new plan. This is what I tell my characters:

Thank God, they say yes. (Yes, I know the characters aren’t real, but the muse is and sometimes she’s a real diva.) Then the words start flowing and this is how cool I feel:

And it all works out in the end with even the author getting a happily ever after. And if I have to be crazy to make that happen? So be it.

Because the crazy amongst us are in good company. I say go forth and wave your crazy author flag.