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ptimist woke up early in the morning, refreshed from a fabulous dream she was having about her NaNoWriMo novel.
“I’ve got it!” She smiled to herself in the mirror. “I know how to get my heroine to the train station on time!” She winked and spun away from the mirror.
She checked her email before getting started for the day. Ugh. Three messages from Discouragement. Why wouldn’t he leave her alone?! She already had to move to an undisclosed location after he started meeting her at her computer every morning with a cup of cold water.
She could tell this was going to be a long day of avoiding Discouragement. Couldn’t he take a hint?
She started to write the train scene but it wasn’t coming out like she thought. It seemed so good in her dream, but now….Optimist stared out the window. She gasped. Discouragement was sitting in the tree smiling at her.
Aargh. She closed the curtains with a dramatic flair.
The phone rang. Caller ID showed no phone number but she picked up. She needed a distraction anyway.
“It’s me. Can’t we talk? We used to be so good together.”
Discouragement! She slammed down the phone, glad that it was one of those old-fashioned phones that you can slam down with a satisfying bang.
She called up her friend, Edify. “Edi! I need your help. He’s back.”
“Oh, he makes me so mad,” said Edi. “You are too good for him. This has been going on too long. It needs to stop here and now. You can’t avoid Discouragement any more. You’ve got to confront him. He’s not taking any hints so you’re going to have to meet him head on. Do it at a coffee shop and pick me up a double shot skinny caramel latte while you’re at it.”
“Thanks, Edi. You always know what to do. But what do I say?”
“Tell him that you are writing your first draft. No one writes a good first draft. Tell him that it doesn’t matter how many words it ends up being as long as you push yourself each day to write as much as you can in that day. Tell him that you are working towards your personal best. And, lastly, tell him that he’s a doofus.
Optimist looked at the pink sticky note on her computer and smiled. She knew just what she would do. She….(check the comments section for alternate endings…and leave one of your own! )
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Comedy ending:
Optimist picked up the phone again and pressed speed dial #5.
“I knew you couldn’t leave me,” said Discouragement in his sultry voice. Ready for a day of taking long naps and eating Ben and Jerry’s from the carton?”
“No, Discouragement. No more. I’m seeing someone else.”
“Do I know who it is?”
“Your separated-at-birth twin—Encouragement. He treats me right. He puts little sticky notes on my computer that say “Way to go!” and he rewards me with M&Ms every 1000 words. He high-fives me when I enter a new number into the NaNoWriMo word count meter. I’ll never go back to you, Discouragement. Never.”
Tragedy ending:
Optimist opened the curtains, ready to stop avoiding Discouragement once and for all. He was no longer sitting in the tree. She heard a noise in the house.
She raced to the living room. Discouragement was standing there looking enticing with two tickets to a matinee.
“What d’ya say we blow off work and watch a movie. Re-live old times. Then we can stroll through the bookstore looking at all the books that are just like the one you are writing, except those ideas are already published. The works been done, you don’t need to waste your time trying to write a new novel. All the good ideas are taken. Besides, you do know that the average book only sells 500 copies anyway. Why waste your time?”
Optimist looked at her feet. Her shoulders slumped and she sighed. “I’ll go get my purse.”
“Oh, no, you don’t!” Edify burst through the door with two cups of double shot skinny caramel latte. [author’s note—I couldn’t leave it as a tragedy; it was too depressing]
“Edify! What would I do without you?”
Edi smiled at Optimism. “You’ve been there for me when I needed you, girlfriend. Just returning the favor.”
She pushed Discouragement out the door and double locked it. She yelled through the keyhole: “I’m not leaving until December 1st so don’t even try to come back!”
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