Creativity and Burnout

I want to be this cat.

At the end of March, I released the second book in the Heartfriends series. 127 thousand words are a lot of words no matter what genre they're in, and I put in a lot of work to get them. The smart thing to do after all that writing, editing, and proofreading would be to take a break, wouldn't it?

But I didn't. As soon as the book came out, I was on to the next project, looking into next steps for the press, and planning a way to release multiple books this coming calendar year. For my current work in progress, I signed up for Camp NaNoWriMo with a goal of 30K words. At first, the writing went fine--until it didn't, until nothing I was putting to paper was living up to my own expectations. I realized I didn't have a strong sense of my characters, which is how I like to build stories, and I realized it was because I never gave myself the time to brainstorm. I finally decided that I needed to take a break, a small one to start with. I had a few days off from work recently, so I took those days off from writing, too, in an effort to clear my head a little.

Turns out it's hard to take a break, and even after just four days, I'm chomping at the bit to get writing again when I know I'm not ready to dive in. Taking a break is especially hard in a community that often gives advice, though well-meaning, like, "You have to write every day." Because then when I don't, I start to feel like a loser. And I feel like that even when I make myself try to write because I end up just staring at the screen. If I do manage to get some words down, I know they won't be good. People might say that having something down, even if it's bad, is better than nothing, but sometimes that's just not the case.

The reason those forced words won't be good enough to even revise is because I'm burned out. Maybe creative people are especially prone to burnout anyway, but for indie authors, the pressure to produce is incredibly high and constant. All the advice says the more books we put out, the better they'll sell. The longer our backlist, the better our frontlist does. It's no wonder I want to just go, go, go even when it's clear I'm going nowhere.

This feeling is extra frustrating because I used to have good instincts for where a story should or might go. Now, often, I flounder when it comes to the plot. I don't know how to regain those instincts or what my particular answer to burnout is. But, as with everything in life, we love talking about the good aspects of the job and hiding away the bad. I figure the best way to start finding a solution is to start talking about it. So, fellow writers, do you have preferred methods for dealing with burnout? 

BOOK REVIEW: Love on Lavender Lane, Karis Walsh

★★★ 1/2

Love on Lavender Lane is about Paige, a consultant who helps businesses improve profit margins, and Kassidy, a lavender farmer whose dad pays for a consultation from Paige. Though Paige is more accustomed to working with bigger companies, she relishes the chance to get away from Portland, work in the countryside for a bit, and get her hands dirty. Kassidy, on the other hand, doesn't exactly care for her estranged father's gift, and she thinks Paige will advise her to sell the farm. Their attraction is pretty immediate, and although I wouldn't categorize it as insta-love, part of me wish they'd spent longer in the almost-rivals stage.

I'd definitely classify this as a soft story. Not a lot big happens, and I'm very okay with that. The characters are the main focus here, and Paige and Kassidy are both lovely. I liked Paige a little more because she was more outgoing and funny, but I connected with Kassidy more because she's more reserved and likes to stay in her comfort zone. They spend a lot of the book learning about each other, and they both deal with past baggage in a believable way. My biggest complaint about that is the black moment was a little too dramatic. I had some trouble following Kassidy's logic there and wish the characters would've talked it out more.

This book also features a loveable dog named Dante, who was my favorite character--hands down! I only wish Kipper the cat had featured a bit more, too, but Dante stole the show. Although it didn't blow me away, this was a pleasant read with an interesting premise and an even lovelier setting.

Thanks to NetGalley, Bold Strokes Books, and Karis Walsh for the e-copy!

Happy Release Day to WOLF SMOKE

Now available in paperback and e-book from Sky Forest Press

Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and wherever books are sold, or ask your library to purchase a copy

Add it on Goodreads today, and check under the cut for an excerpt

The Road to Book Two--Part 3

It's certainly been a while since I've talked at length about Book Two! That's partly because I've had other projects to work on, and I want to give the Sky Forest Press projects proper attention. But it's also because I get embarrassed to talk about my slow writing pace. Though it sounds so silly when I write it down, it seems like other people churn out multiple books a year while it takes me at least two years to write one epic fantasy. That sometimes makes me feel like I'm less of a writer, which I know I'm not! As Baymax said, "I am not fast." That's all there is to it.

Now for the news: Book Two is almost done! Getting close to the end means it's easier to see the end result, and I'm happy to report that I'm proud of this book. I hope readers will enjoy reading it!

Check under the cut for a look at the cover, designed by me and my friend Erica Hogan. She also created a map of the world, which is incredible and something I've been asked about often. I'm excited for you guys to see it. If you're interested in connecting with her for her map-making skillz, you can find her on Twitter.

Happy Galentine's Day!

In celebration of my second favorite holiday-that-came-from-a-television-show (the first is Treat Yo Self Day, of course), I'm featuring a few of my favorite books that include female friendships.

credit: www.bustle.com

1. Lumberjanes Volume 1: Beware the Kitten Holy, Noelle Stevenson
A cute story featuring five girls at the Lumberjanes summer camp, where they get caught up in supernatural shenanigans.

2. The Legend of Wonder Woman: Origins, Renae de Liz
I think this excerpt from my Goodreads review sums this up pretty well:
"But my absolute favorite part of this was her friendship with Etta. Etta and the Holliday girls are fiercely loyal and brave even without Wonder Woman's powers. It's so refreshing and great to see the central relationship be a super supportive one between women."

3. Code Name Verity, Elizabeth Wein
Beware, though! This one's sad, but I still love that the driving force of this story is the friendship between Maddie and Queenie.

4. Rat Queens Volume 1: Sass & Sorcery, Kurtis J. Wiebe
Hannah the Elf, Violet the Dwarf, Dee the Human, and Betty the Smidgen make up a guild called the Rat Queens, who kill magical monsters for booze money, basically.

5. Beauty Queens, Libba Bray
A plane crash leaves the fifty contestants of the Miss Teen Dream pageant stranded on a deserted island, where they fight to survive both the island and each other. This satire tackles female friendship and all the uncomfortable issues that come with being a teenage girl head-on.

What are some of your favorites?

BOOK REVIEW: The Delivery of Flesh (Bulletproof Witch #1), F.J. Blair

★★★ 1/2

As an indie fantasy writer, I love to find other indie fantasy writers who are new to me. I can't quite remember how I came across this novella, but I'm certainly glad I did! This is a fun, quick read with an interesting world and shades of Wynonna Earp. It's about Temperance Whiteoak, whose grandfather was the first Pistol Warlock, people who can make and use hex bullets. Now, though, the Pistol Warlocks are lawmen, and Temperance isn't interested in that nearly as much as she's interested in revenge against the demons who slaughtered her town and family.

But getting revenge means Temperance needs hex bullets, and hex bullets mean she needs money. She agrees to help a marshal escort a prisoner to Benson City in exchange for payment. Things get complicated, though, when the prisoner's men chase them across the wilderness thanks to a magical brand.

Because it's a novella, the plot is pretty straightforward, but I think where the story shines is in the worldbuilding. Little by little, Blair sprinkles in interesting or cool details that add to the world. The concepts of Pistol Warlocks and hex bullets are vital to the story, and the further in you get, the more you know about both. I especially liked the tidbit when Temperance refers to making and casting the bullets as an art form. But even the details that were less important to the plot made the world seem more developed and less cookie-cutter. My favorite was Astor the horse, Temperance's familiar, who can communicate telepathically with her and frequently does to tell her she's making bad decisions.

My biggest complaint is I didn't think Temperance was fully fleshed-out. Part of that is just the length of the story. It's hard to fit a lot of character development into 100 pages. Mostly, I want to know more about what drives her--outside of revenge--and I'm looking forward to seeing where the next novella takes us.

BOOK REVIEW: Pursuit of Happiness, Carsen Taite

★★★

Pursuit of Happiness is the third book I've read by Taite. Actually, my first ever NetGalley book was Taite's A More Perfect Union, which came out December 2017. I'd requested it on a whim and ended up really enjoying it to the point of seeking out more books in the lesfic genre. This one features a few recurring characters from A More Perfect Union and an earlier Taite book I haven't read, but you don't need to read those before reading this one.

As you can probably guess from the titles, Taite often writes about politics and the law. One thing I like about that is her stories feature strong women with tough jobs. In Pursuit of Happiness, Meredith is a Democratic senator and and Stevie is a public defender. Both are career-driven but find themselves drawn together after meeting at a senate hearing. But things get complicated when Meredith gets a last-minute opportunity to run in the primaries for the chance to be the Democratic presidential nominee, and Stevie's not sure she wants the exposure that would come with dating a presidential candidate.