Rob Poor was about to write another story, but the devil came and said, “You should set the mood with YouTube, I’ve a playlist that’s perfect for you.” And Rob Poor thought that was a good idea. An hour later, Rob Poor was about to write another story, but the devil came again and said, “You should research with Wikipedia, I’ve an article that’s perfect for you.” And Rob Poor thought that also was a good idea. Two hours later, Rob Poor was about to write another story, but the devil came for a third time and said, “You should get advice on Substack, I’ve a post that’s perfect for you.” And Rob Poor thought that too was a good idea. Three hours later, Rob Poor didn’t have time to write another story, and the devil came and said, “You should be proud of your progress, writing’s hard to do.”
Sounds like a very accurate description of writer’s block. I remember I once had to look up an intro for a piece of media so I could successfully write the protagonist’s narration and personal opinions of it, and failed to write. And then I failed to write for several months on end. And then lost the draft.
But yes, Rob Poor—more like Poor Rob, robbed of his time and motivation—is a very accurate representation of all us poor writers
Giving the devil his due, indeed!