The caveat to the "nothing days:" they should be intentional, not because you're too exhausted mentally and physically to write, so you stay in bed half the day and spend the other half binge-watching "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on Prime while feeling searing guilt over not working on your 5 active projects (ahem—not a real example). The point is, after 30 years as a full-time freelancer (an oxymoron if ever there was one), I'm still getting the hang of not overcommitting and not putting too much pressure on myself to be The Answer for everyone's ghosting needs. Choosing balance and space is a skill I'm still mastering. Peace.
One I am still trying to master. For example, it's the day after Xmas, and all through the house, everyone is relaxing except me. I'm trying to get caught up on two books before the world comes crashing back in on January 6. But this interregnum period between Christmas and New Year's is a perfect window of what I call "unrequired time" during which we of the ghosting persuasion can get work done without calls or interruptions. That helps with balance other times, I suppose.
Thank you so much Amy for this wonderful piece. The journal prompts were amazing and so helpful to begin outlining my goals for next year. I've felt so stagnant with my writing lately, and definitely somewhat burnt out, so it felt really great to sit down and journal out what I want next year to look like creatively.
Next year is the year for big things and everything aligning!
Ahh so glad they were helpful! Yes yes yes -- next year will bring about so much good energy. Can't wait for you to find your way through your burnout and to the other side where creativity is waiting :)
This year did not turn out the way I intended. I want to expand my 30+ year part-time writing career into a full-time career, focus more on my Substack work, and move to New Mexico.
What I got was emergency bowel surgery on Easter Sunday that landed me with a temporary colostomy, another surgery a day later, and a third on 5/1/2024. I have had 8 months of off and on pity parties and finally the colostomy reversal surgery on 12/9/2024 in a hospital that didn’t make me feel medically safe.
What this year taught me is:
1. Life never goes as planned, so be prepared to pivot.
2. My brain doesn’t work well when I experience severe pain.
3. There are people in the world who want only the best for me.
4. The “sick” care system in the U.S. is broken and I had better take action to limit my exposure to this system in the future.
6. I can do hard things.
Next year will be a time to course correct and to open myself up to the possibilities. My writing life will expand and I cannot wait to see where it goes.
You CAN do hard things. Thanks for sharing -- and so sorry to hear about your health issues. When I was dealing with health issues in previous years, my productivity was just not the same. I completely relate to what you said about having to be flexible and pivot. Wishing you a happy and healthy 2025 ❤️
Loved this roundup! While I've written more this year than previously (in both book writing and article writing), I have also published less. At first that really upset me, but I'm excited now because it means in 2025 I'll publish more than average, as these longer projects are finishing up. I can't wait to see the fruits of that labor soon.
The caveat to the "nothing days:" they should be intentional, not because you're too exhausted mentally and physically to write, so you stay in bed half the day and spend the other half binge-watching "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on Prime while feeling searing guilt over not working on your 5 active projects (ahem—not a real example). The point is, after 30 years as a full-time freelancer (an oxymoron if ever there was one), I'm still getting the hang of not overcommitting and not putting too much pressure on myself to be The Answer for everyone's ghosting needs. Choosing balance and space is a skill I'm still mastering. Peace.
I love this, Tim! Finding balance is definitely an art form :)
One I am still trying to master. For example, it's the day after Xmas, and all through the house, everyone is relaxing except me. I'm trying to get caught up on two books before the world comes crashing back in on January 6. But this interregnum period between Christmas and New Year's is a perfect window of what I call "unrequired time" during which we of the ghosting persuasion can get work done without calls or interruptions. That helps with balance other times, I suppose.
Thank you so much Amy for this wonderful piece. The journal prompts were amazing and so helpful to begin outlining my goals for next year. I've felt so stagnant with my writing lately, and definitely somewhat burnt out, so it felt really great to sit down and journal out what I want next year to look like creatively.
Next year is the year for big things and everything aligning!
Ahh so glad they were helpful! Yes yes yes -- next year will bring about so much good energy. Can't wait for you to find your way through your burnout and to the other side where creativity is waiting :)
Aww thank you! Just reading your words is encouraging. Looking forward to everything I have lined up!
This was such a great post to read. Thanks.
This year did not turn out the way I intended. I want to expand my 30+ year part-time writing career into a full-time career, focus more on my Substack work, and move to New Mexico.
What I got was emergency bowel surgery on Easter Sunday that landed me with a temporary colostomy, another surgery a day later, and a third on 5/1/2024. I have had 8 months of off and on pity parties and finally the colostomy reversal surgery on 12/9/2024 in a hospital that didn’t make me feel medically safe.
What this year taught me is:
1. Life never goes as planned, so be prepared to pivot.
2. My brain doesn’t work well when I experience severe pain.
3. There are people in the world who want only the best for me.
4. The “sick” care system in the U.S. is broken and I had better take action to limit my exposure to this system in the future.
6. I can do hard things.
Next year will be a time to course correct and to open myself up to the possibilities. My writing life will expand and I cannot wait to see where it goes.
You CAN do hard things. Thanks for sharing -- and so sorry to hear about your health issues. When I was dealing with health issues in previous years, my productivity was just not the same. I completely relate to what you said about having to be flexible and pivot. Wishing you a happy and healthy 2025 ❤️
Loved this roundup! While I've written more this year than previously (in both book writing and article writing), I have also published less. At first that really upset me, but I'm excited now because it means in 2025 I'll publish more than average, as these longer projects are finishing up. I can't wait to see the fruits of that labor soon.
ok we really need to talk about your word count production 😂 to be discussed
Always happy to share my hacks for getting words down!