My Writing Hiatus

My advice to people experiencing writer's block used to be, write a little bit every day, even if it's just a sentence. But this past year, I experienced such a motivation drain, I literally could not bring myself to write a single word.

It wasn't what you'd call writer's block. To me, at least, writer's block is when you don't know what to write. This was a complete lack of motivation. To my credit, I was pregnant, and doing anything was hard. I tried for a while to write something, but there were days when I would start up my computer, look at that Microsoft Word icon, and think, "Nope, I can't do it." Eventually I gave up and decided I needed a break.

For several months, I stopped even thinking about writing. Usually I have some plot swirling in my head, but I didn't even try to do that. And honestly, I think it was good for me. I think, for that time period, it was what I needed.

Eventually, while reading a shortened version of Snow White with my kid, I started thinking about how I wish the story was told. I came up with several chapters' worth of plot, and eventually wrote it down. After a while, even that project became dull to me, but I didn't want my momentum to stop.

So, I turned back to my quadrilogy. I wasn't ready to pick up where I left off, but someone who had read through the first book contacted me and said they would like to read the second book. I told them it wasn't ready, and I would need to fix some continuity problems first. So I tried that for a while. It was nice, because it felt like a mix between reading and writing, looking through what I'd already written and fixing things up.

But, at a certain point, even that felt like a slog. Part of the problem was I hit a section that needed a lot of fixing, and another part of the problem was the book simply was getting boring. Which meant I didn't want to read it, and I didn't want to write it.

But it was about that time that I started thinking of things that could happen in the final book, where I had left off months prior. I wrote several paragraphs, along with an outline for the next chapter. I was making progress on a project that I hadn't touched since the previous year, and then...

I gave birth.

I was too tired to write. My motivation was once again gone. I dropped writing and stopped thinking about it.

And you know? I don't feel guilty.

There is a season for everything. There is a season for being super productive, there is a season for writing, a season for editing, a season for publishing. And there is a season for being a mother and taking care of your newborn and yourself. 

I've come back to this blog to try to get some kind of writing out, to get back in the groove. Hopefully I can start writing my quadrilogy again. One thing I've learned from all this is when you're feeling a lack of motivation, maybe try another project. Maybe write a new story, maybe edit one you've already written, maybe try your hand at blogging. Or, maybe take a break. That's okay, too. When you're ready to come back, do what you can, whatever that is.

Hopefully this is the start of me coming back.