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Happy Monday! And Happy New Year, as I’ve been away from here for a little while.
To be honest, December was a challenge for me. I know I’m breaking some kind of keep-it-upbeat rule by saying so. However, sometimes we do and go through hard things! Part of being a successful writer (or anything else) is how we process those experiences and regain our footing.
Plus, I want to provide something for those of us who didn’t hit the ground running on January first. Those of us whose Christmas trees are still up and who are perhaps still nursing a little bronchitis and have yet to run our first 5k of 2023. Those of us who are decidedly *not* doing Dry January.
We’re going to be fine. It’s easy, I think, to place too much weight on how we start the new year. If yours didn’t start in an ideal place, I hope you’ll cut yourself some slack. That’s what I’m trying to do.
I’m also taking little steps to get back on track. This is a signature move for me. The idea of buckling down and catching up can feel so overwhelming after a rough patch. Many people, in response to that overwhelm, will lose motivation to make any effort at all.
Instead of dwelling on the time I failed to spend writing last month and trying to compensate for it now, I’m waking up each morning to a modest goal of fifty new words. Fifty words on one of my new book projects, every day.
The trick here is, I have a lot of trouble *only* writing fifty words once I get started. I go above that number pretty much every time I go above zero. That’s why I set the goal at fifty. It’s the number that will bring me to the table (almost) no matter what — and getting to the table is most of the battle.
I talk about this a lot in my book Order from Chaos, and also on my ADHD Homestead blog. The concept comes from a book called Mini Habits by Stephen Guise, which I highly recommend. It changed my life!
In addition to dipping my feet back into these new book drafts, I’ve been making an extra effort to fill my social calendar. I’m a through-and-through introvert. In-person connection is often the first thing to go when I get stressed, bummed out, and/or busy with work. However, I’ve noticed I — surprise — actually *do* require some degree of human connection to thrive. The other day I met a dear friend for happy hour and it felt like everything I’ve been needing lately. I had covid over Christmas, and I was surprised by how acutely I felt the absence of that ritual of sharing food and drink across a table from people I love.
So, onward! I hope you are moving forward into the new year in whatever way feels right. Also, if you aren’t doing a new workout or participating in Dry January, I want you to know: neither am I, and I don’t think we need to feel bad about that at all.
P.S. She’s Not Home is currently up on BookSirens! BookSirens is similar to NetGalley, in that it offers advance review copies of upcoming books for ebook readers. ARCs went out to our Street Team last week, but if you want to grab a review copy without committing to a mailing list, there are still some available on BookSirens. Also, feel free to spread the word if you know someone who’d enjoy reading and reviewing the book!
xoxo,
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