I’m struggling. Are you too?
Long time no see/read … and I’m very sorry about that. Like for many people, my life has changed a lot during the pandemic. I was quite productive (I wrote 52 short stories last year) and enjoyed the time as best I could. Of course there were many things that took a lot of adjusting, but I never lost the urge to write.
That changed drastically at the beginning of this year. I began to avoid my novel. Instead I planned another three that are now waiting to be written, and dabbled in short and flash stories. Those are fun but not as satisfying as novels. Then the war in Ukraine started, and I haven’t been able to write more than a few words since then. Not even the writing event Camp NaNo changed that (and I had high hopes).
The flurry of activities, the noise (even though mostly happy), the returning people (or dear, the people, even family and friends) seem to be too much after more than two years of silence. Analyzing my feelings (or temporary lack thereof), I think I have some form of depression or burnout. It’s not that I don’t want to write, I do, I just can’t seem to get myself to actually do it. It’s a pattern I know from both my husband and son. So I decided I won’t allow myself to remain in this state. That only brings about self-pity. From my husband and son, I’ve learned that slow and steady with plenty of downtime gets one back on one’s feet.
So I’m setting myself some small goals. I decided to post each one here to see how it goes. As you know I’m not tremendously good at writing blog posts regularly, but I’ll do my very best. Maybe seeing me making progress and relapsing but never giving up helps you, too, to adjust to the new normal.
My first goal was to update the website, which I did successfully. I added all the short stories that were published over the last two years, and since they didn’t fit into the menu any longer, I put them on a separate page.
I even made a cover for the story “A Twist on Katlani’s Plan” that I’m quite proud of. I sold it in February 2021 and it’s free to read. Check it out if you want and let me know if you like it.
My next goal is to write an interesting Flash Fiction story for the upcoming bloghop. We’ll see how that goes. I’ll do my best and hope you will too.
Tried to hit the like button and it didn’t go through I think. I read this story and it’s so engrossing that I spaced out my to-do’s that I was working. Will make it up during my free time this afternoon.
I’m glad you liked Katlani’s story. I very much enjoyed writing her.
You have resolved to fight the good fight and I admire that. I just presented on Writer’s Block the other day and I strongly believe that “it” is not just one thing. Sometimes, let’s face it, serious stuff happens to us, and it would be insane to try to soldier on instead of attending to it. But in the end you decide whether and how to move forward.
You’ve made good decisions so far!
One step at a time. 😀
Is such a strange juxaposition. I look outside and the sun is shining. I bought some plants and superficially I’m happy. But it;s hard to dig deeper. Because deep inside there’s this knot that needs untangling. I hope that you can enjoy some downtime. We can’t fix the world. We can do the little things for the people closest.
That’s a very strong and accurate picture. There’s a knot inside, and if I try to untangle it too fast, it’ll only pull tighter. So I’m taking my time with this. First and foremost, I want to regain the joy I felt when writing.