One thing I always forget to do when I finish a book is to give myself downtime. For some reason, I want to jump from project to project immediately. I always have to be busy, so that sort of makes sense but I forget that I’m human. So, inevitably, what happens is that I burn myself out and end up taking two to three weeks off anyway.
Or you know, in some cases, two years. Ha.
So, I finished His Last Breath, got it formatted and set up for pre-order and did all the email things that I’m supposed to do and I did most of that within a couple of days. Once I finished that, I stared at a wall. I had zero desire to write or do anything creative. Trying to get words was like pulling teeth. Adult teeth. With long roots. For real.
Hell, I didn’t even know what story to write next.
I took two days off to binge TV shows on Netflix. I got back to work after that, rereading what I’ve already written on Her Last Kill, on the second Section Five story, and this personal story I work on when I need a change.
Turns out that break was exactly what I needed.
Even though I promised myself that I wasn’t going to push myself hard after my hiatus, I still tend to try. It’s like it’s hard-wired into my brain that I need to be in the “on” position all the time. But now I’m starting to recognize the signs and I remember to slow down before it’s too late.
Sometimes now, I purposely turn the switch to the “off” position and go veg on the couch or read a book. Crazy, right?
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