If it wasn’t for the Internet, I think a lot more people would write books. It’s actually a wonder that anything ever gets done when most of have easy access to a firehose of information, social networking and clickbait 24/7. There are times when a writer purposely shuts off the Internet…and there are times when a writer’s computer decides to do it for him.

My trusty laptop is almost seven years old and its twilight years, it’s become rather eccentric. It’s latest trick is to periodically refuse to connect to the Internet. Every fifth or sixth time I turn it on, it simply won’t recognize the wifi network. This quirk can be enormously annoying. For one thing, it’s forcing me to write this blog on my phone. But it also has an unexpected upside. Without Internet access, I have no choice but to actually write.

It’s been a blessing and a curse. I miss knowing when I will be allowed to get online to pay bills and write blogs on a real keyboard, but at the same time, I’m left with a distraction-free environment to create. Just me and my Word document. It’s a recipe for serious literary productivity.

Now, if only I could think of something to write.

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Jonny Eberle is a writer with writer’s block in Tacoma, WA. If you see the Internet, please it that Jonny misses it and will be back soon.