PS: here’s wot I’ll do4thee:

PS: centillions X centillions of
alt.realities available for eons:

...feeding you baklava, kiwi/tiny
oranges, cotton-candy-delicacies,
deliciousNutritious cinnamon bunnies;

exploriNgroovn, rrrrasssl’Nlovin,
nekk’Ndancin all over-the-rrrockin’
galaxy or aboard my 1,500ft-groovy/
time-travel/scavenger-hunt/party-
hardy, dyno!mite!starship! bizarre;

A-L-L kindsa movies which you can
direct/star in A-L-L over-the-universe:
we can certainly teach Aikido/Jujitsu to
those wild natives in their far-out-zip code;

Cya soon, ya stunning wildflower you!
xonillion X millinillion X oemnillions ...
MOE! adventures, Curly, waiting for U.S.
if we’d put Msr. Almighty God, esq. first.

So let’s meet@RongWay café
Upstairs/beers/pretzels and
we’ll schmooze, cool shoes?
+ NOPEcantELOPE.blogspot.com +
Cya soon, ya stunning wildflower...

If I get too invested in some rigid drive to produce, I can easily lose track of the subtler elements of what I love about my story. I probably overcompensate with too many "rest days", but some of my best insights into my current project come when I'm not actually writing.

I had a full-time job as a research scientist. But I had left UW with all my data in a box because my advisor and I no longer got along; he probably thought he was rid of me! But I'm stubborn, and in the end he turned out to be a fairly good editor to my sent neatly typed drafts - because he realized he was stuck with me, and I wasn't going to quit! It was HIS reputation on the line at that point - we got me through and back to work with the degree I was supposed to have when I started.

But that was 1978.

I've now been ill for 35 years+ with ME/CFS which robs me of most energy, and casts a pall of brain fog over most days: I write when I can count on the brain for a few hours.

In 25 years, I've published the first and second volumes of my mainstream literary trilogy, Pride's Children: PURGATORY (15 years) and NETHERWORLD (7); and I'm up to my ears in LIMBO (3 so far), in a trilogy mostly because Amazon can't publish a single paper book as long as GWTW in a decent-size type, and I won't make readers squint.

I'm at the mercy of a damaged brain and body up against a very big novel - hope to get it finished pre-humously.

It helps to be 1) stubborn, and 2) KNOW you can write and finish long projects. At least I have SOMETHING to show for those years - PURGATORY was Indies Today 2021 Best Contemporary novel, and NETHERWORLD a finalist in 2022.

As yours, it's a race against time. In my favor, said persistence and very long-lived family genes; against, well, on top of disease and physical disability there is always the fun of aging - and other diseases and problems. But if I can continue to make progress, I won't be DNF because of quitting, and, almost never leaving my apartment, it won't be because I get hit by a truck.

And it has been exhilarating, win, place, or lose.

Complicating my writing now is the strong need to seriously work on establishing an author's platform. I failed at that before, in great part because of scheduling, maintaining a WordPress blog site, and divided focus. I didn't enjoy it.

I've just established a more seriously author focused website, and have learned blogs are easier and best when kept short and simple. I also ditched WordPress for a zero-maintenance vendor (Tertuila). The result–I'm enjoying it and feeling more confident now.

Fortunately, I do have several local critique groups I attend, so good support. And, taking advise from some earlier wise articles on WITS, have gone to running multiple WIPS (including short stories) now. When I need a break or hit a wall on one, I can jump to another and refresh my mind, while knowing I'm still making progress on something.

Hi Matthew- thanks for sharing. Yes! As a hobby, any pressure is self induced and can be modified, for sure. There are so many different kinds of writers, from hobbyists to professional. I love hearing how everyone approaches this craft differently. Good luck with your writing and your blog!