Procrastination is a relative thing, but for me, as a writer, even when I'm doing nothing, there's a lot going on. When I'm driving log distances the odds are good that I'll have music going and I'll be plotting out a novel or a short story. When I'm watching TV, the same thing. When Im talking to people, not so much, because actual conversation requires that I pay attention.
When I'm reading a book, I'm automatically correlating the information into my reading list. Not on a conscious level, but often just to make certain that what I'm reading isn't too similar to what I'm working on,.When I wrote BLOOD RED I literally read fifty books on vampires and watched easily thirty movies for the exact same reason. Research is important. There are a LOT of vampire novels out there and a little crossover is going to happen but I wanted to try to make what I was doing as unique as possible.
Here's the thing: writers are often daydreamers. Even when doing nothing, the mind wants to wander and play what if. For that reason I will gleefully encourage procrastination, so long as it's within reason. Twiddling your thumbs will never take the place of hard work when it comes to putting food on the table. I can daydream a day away, but I still need to meet or exceed my word count whenever humanly possible.
