we can all fall prey to that feeling that the grass is greener on the other side.
especially this time of year when it seems everyone is posting some holiday goodness. I’ve learned to be thankful, not just for my life the way it is, but also for my friends and families’ lives and the blessings they have.
I am thankful they are happy, healthy, and blessed.
The holidays are not a happy, joyful, or celebratory time for everyone. For some, this is a time of grief, strife, and strain.
Please remember: In this season of light someone is sitting in the darkness.
The best way you can help is to offer HOPE: be there without hovering, offer help without solutions, and emphasize the good without diminishing the present bad. It’s a tall order, I know, but it takes a tough person to sit out their own internal battles, remember that.
This year, I want to speak specifically to the HOPE of all who consider themselves writers or who wish to become writers.
Here’s the deal, we have to have HOPE to keep going. If we give up on being published or recognized or even finished, that’s it. No one is going to do it for us.
We have to push and push and push ourselves, and that’s difficult. Much easier to give it up and blame something else. That’s the thing though. Once you realize it, you can’t unring the bell.
I HOPE after last week you’re feeling better. HOPE you did a little self-care.
I HOPE you have a little more HOPE this week and that you’re ready to face the end of the year.
If you’re not quite so surefooted, contact me. If you need some help with quarterly planning, learning to be a writer, or just someone to talk to, I’m only a click away.
How is HOPE manifesting in your life this season? What HOPE do you have to offer other writers?
I’m coming off a rough week work-wise, and I’ve been sick. I’m trying to find new jobs while completing the ones I have. All while not feeling worth a crap. Writing for NaNoWriMo has been low on the priority list.
This week I’m really hitting it hard, but I’m also taking advantage of the extra time to take some care of myself and my needs.
In my time with hope*writers, I’ve encountered the writing of Julia Cameron, who insists we take an “artist date” at least once a week.
An artist date is simply a date with oneself where one fills one’s soul with creativity. It’s appropriately vague to include all manner of activities, and an artist is anyone who creates for work or pleasure.
I’ve been to museums, garden tours, craft stores, and nature walks as artists dates, and I’m always on the lookout for more ideas.
I also haven’t been on an artist date in several weeks. It’s so easy to schedule other things, especially work, or to make excuses, especially when I don’t feel good, and I forget that this is a crucial part of maintaining healthy mental balance.
My work depends on my creativity, and so taking care of my creativity is just as important as taking care of my physical needs.
So my challenge is to not only take it easy this Thanksgiving week but to make this a week of self-care:
MONDAY: paint my nails TUESDAY: watch a movie WEDNESDAY: dinner out THURSDAY: nap FRIDAY: bubble bath SATURDAY: craft and reading time SUNDAY: hair, face, or foot mask (or maybe all three)
If I can schedule my writing time then I can schedule my self-care time as well.
How are you taking care of yourself this week? Do you have any great ideas for self-care or an artist date?
Write any words you want from November 1 to 30th and try to hit 50k, the equivalent of 1,667 words a day.
Because NOVEMBER is such a busy month, PLANNERS and even some PANTSERS like to begin planning their novels in the month of OCTOBER.
Hence, PREPTOBER.
I personally consider myself a PLANTSER. Not only because it’s fun to say, but also because I am a blend of a PLANNER and a PANTSER. PLANNERS do just that: plan, outline, and world build before they ever start the real work of writing. PANTSERS just fly by the seat of their pants and write whatever comes to mind.
PLANTSERS do some version of both. I make very detailed outlines of my novels and do all sorts of prep, but when I sit down to write I can’t control the flow of words. I don’t even try anymore. I’ve always said I’m a better editor than a writer, and that’s because I have to edit so much of my own work.
*Announced my writing project (NANOWRIMO) and my word count goal (50k)
*Decided my genre, story idea, and point of view (POV)
*Planned my writing time and routine and prepped my writing space
I still have some hard stuff to do:
*Outline
*Character Questionnaires
*Research
All so I will be ready to write at the stroke of midnight on Nov. 1st.
Am I crazy? Probably. Have I done it before? You betcha.
I’m still trying to figure out this writing life, but I know participating in NANOWRIMO has and will continue to help me put my words out there, and I invite you to join me. Believe me, you can.
XXXlinsey
RAFFLE: In other news, I’ve just begun designing some notebooks and workbooks that are for sale on amazon. COMMENT ON THIS POST to be considered for the drawing for one PREPTOBER workbook and one NANOWRIMO workbook sometime in the next few weeks. I’d love to hear from you.
My confidence has taken a hit the last few months and you, my dears, have suffered as well.
Instead of following my pledge to document my struggle, I’ve suffered in silence, licking my wounds in hibernation.
NO MORE.
If I cannot honest and open here, then I cannot hope to maintain honesty and openness elsewhere, so let me start with the truth.
I’ve not been ok.
In the interest of privacy, I won’t go into detail, but I have been in physical, mental, and emotional pain for months. I believe we’re all suffering collective trauma from the pandemic, and perhaps that’s all this is, after all. I’ve been balancing the correct medication for my condition and the fallout of the side effects.
None of it is pretty.
We’re headed into the winter, traditionally a rough time for me, but I’ve had a rough summer and I’m feeling pretty good at the moment.
Things are looking up for the first time in a while.
I hope it will last, but I’m also looking ahead to Daylight Savings Time, another rough patch, and prepping for the change in season best I can.
The point I want to make is not what’s been wrong, but how to make it right.
If you’re having a hard time or expecting a hard time this coming season, I invite you to join me in some cold weather fun on YouTube and Instagram.
If you need someone to reach out to, then I’m only a CONTACT button away.
I’ll be demonstrating and documenting some of my writing processes in OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER on Youtube and bringing some art into the world in OCTOBER AND DECEMBER on Instagram.
If you’d like to follow my writing journey, please subscribe on YOUTUBE
If you’re interested in following my art journey, you can find me on INSTAGRAM
litewings.ink 