Hello, darklings.
Anybody else feeling stressed and too busy?
Yeah, me too. But writing this out, so hopefully I will take my own advice. (There really is something to putting a thing out in the world and doing your best not to prove yourself a hypocrite.)
All work and no play they say makes Jack a dull boy. Now, I don’t know who Jack is or
whether he was below a C average or not, but I do know that if you don’t take time to balance your stress with enjoyability, your creativity will be blunted.
Creativity requires space, after all. It requires being able to let your mind wander, to let your imagination dip its toes into new pools of thought. You can’t exhaust yourself and expect to keep coming up with spoons to do the work.
And yes, I also know I need to get up and be more physical, because stress is often maintained better by exercise, dammit.
There was a panel I attended two years ago hosted by some authors aimed at finishing the book and getting past blocks. The group of authors also had very busy lives with full time jobs and kids to balance, just to demonstrate that even with a full plate, you can find a balance to write and finish writing. But their suggestion might seem counterintuitive at first.
Because each of them suggested to take breaks. If you can’t write, you need to put it down and go do something you like for a while. There are times to put the nose to the grindstone, certainly, but if you are empty, trying to force yourself to write will do little good.
I peeped out sheepishly how they handled the guilt of doing something else when there is a voice clamoring in the back of your head “You should be writing!”
They said go do the thing anyway, because you can’t force creativity from an empty cup.
You might be able to edit and do some things in regard to writing, maybe even switch projects a bit, but if you’re finding it difficult to do anything—put it down and go recharge.
Because creative spoons can be really limited for people day to day. Many famous authors only write a page a day, sometimes less. You have to pace yourself, find your schedule, take breaks, and figure out what works for you to get the job of writing a book done. And you have to stop and play a bit, and not try to grind through on empty cups.
Logically, I know this. My brain is also fully yelling at me that I am not doing enough, and logically I know doing what I can is enough, I know being careful to bring down the stress will assure I will have more creative spoons for later.
It’s not an art in being lazy; it’s the art of not burning out.
So here’s to working on refilling some of the tank with good things. And coffee. Coffee is good.
Working On:
I’ve still been struggling with writing paralysis, but hoping I will replenish my creative spoons in a big way by giving myself some grace. I have a lot of home things to take care of and overtime to work, and It’s just not fair to think I should be writing 3,000 words a day while I have many other things that need taken care of.
Research History This Week That May Have Put Me on a List (or confused whoever monitors me):
More on artificial eye implants and how they were done before modern prosthetics were made. The first artificial eye they have found was actually pretty rad, and they figured she kept the gold layered hemisphere in place by running gold thread through two holes that exited near each corner of her eye to keep it in place. So, like, a badass inner eyepatch.
How cloth and leather were water-proofed historically.
Small cats in the rainforest.
Hypoglycemia and werewolf metabolism.
Writing Whoops:
I had to look up “demur” and “demure” to be sure I was using the correct one. (“Demur” is a verb; “demure” is an adjective. I shall forget this many times.)
Things my AI bot has overheard:
“Ma’am, I know you like these meds, but stop bitting the syringe.”
“Oh, nothing like finding a pad stuck to the dryer’s wall.”
“Staple gun is not a toy. Ha! Anything’s a toy if you play hard enough.”
Beasties Update:
I am currently dealing with the cats being sick with diarrhea. I haven’t caught all the culprits, yet, but I did take the youngest kitten, Hecate, to the vet ,and she’s now on medication for it. So hopefully if it clears up, I know what to get down the rest of the felines’ gullets to help them feel better.
As well as halting the litter boxes being turned into war zones.
Watching and Reading:
Nothing, but I’mma change that!
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