Get Ready to Shine

2018 has been a year of delays, expected and not. (Enough delays that I found myself dumbfounded and inspired by this random road sign near my house.)

This was the first year I had two books come out, so I had the delays that go along with the weeks around publishing a book -- the delay that comes from being in promotion brain all day long, the delay that makes writing new words difficult. 

There were expected school holidays and breaks, and a lovely three-week trip to the mountains where I saw my first bison. All expected delays that I could prepare for.

Then there were unexpected delays. Sick days and sick kids, here and there, as happens. My former agent closing her agency and quitting being an agent. Tearing my rotator cuff in February, and then finally getting surgery to have it repaired three weeks ago, which has caused my writing productivity to be 1% of what it should be.

I've learned that I'm resilient enough to keep writing despite delays, and I've learned that I'm much happier in general when I can be productive. It took time, but writing is a habit for me now. I guess anything you do regularly becomes a habit, and then if you have to suddenly stop doing it, it makes you grumpy. (Welcome to this episode of It Finally Dawns on Julie What a Habit Is.) Exercise, Coffee, Reading, and Writing: these are things I need to do every day, or I get very grumpy at about 4:32 p.m. Sometimes it's a slowish walk while I think about writing, but it's something.

But, hi! I am ready for the fresh start of a new year, especially in what tends to be my most productive season, this (where I live, at least) cold and snowy season where it makes sense to spend most of the day inside working on books.

The incident with my former agent this summer reminded me that, as a writer in traditional publishing, there are things that are my job, and that job fits neatly in a box (it's an imaginary box), and that box is the only part of my job that I have control over. I have control over: the writing, and whatever promotional efforts I want to do. That's it. I don't have control over who buys my books or who reads my books or who likes my books. And it reminded me that I want to keep getting better at the work in that box. 

I was listening to an episode of the Creative Pep Talk podcast that was talking about the seasons of creativity being Mining, Refining, and Shining, and while that might be a little too rhymey for me, it's an interesting way to think about it. When you MINE, you write down all your ideas. You play. When you REFINE, you figure out which ideas are working, and you make them better. And the SHINE is all about showing your work to the world, because it's finally ready. I've heard about thinking of how you creative work aligns with the actual seasons -- it's why I know that winter tends to be a productive time for me. But I also like thinking about the repeating cycle of creative seasons. The idea is that you need the mining, refining, and shining to be in balance in order for your creative work and productivity to be balanced. You can't spend too much time in any of those seasons and be a happy and successful creative person.

One reason 2018 felt sort of drab for me, creatively, is that there wasn't a balance between mining, refining, and shining. It ended up being more of that last step, and some of the second step, and almost none of the first step.

So 2019 is a year where I am committed to rebalancing those creative seasons. I've got a ton of writing and revising planned. There are a lot of manuscripts I've had in the works for years, and 2019 will be the year where I get those to a point where I can shove them out of my box and see where they land. 

(2019 is also a year where I have three books coming out in January, April, and May, so the first part of the year will definitely be pretty intensely Promotional Julie, so don't worry about balance with the SHINE step. But that means the second half of the year can be intensely Productive Writer Julie.)

Why am I telling you all this? Accountability, mostly. To remind you that your career, productivity, and attempts at habit-building will hit speed bumps, and that you should expect delays, and know that it is completely in your power to push through and come out stronger on the other side.

Happy holidays and happy new year, everyone. And here's to a lovely, joyful, and abundant 2019.