I went back to work this week and my body truly didn’t enjoy waking up at 5:30 AM again. So much that it got me up at 4:30 AM to make things worse. Seriously, I’m still averaging 5-6 hours of sleep. This is probably why my evenings have been very low key. I’ll get into that in a bit.
Has it been a bit? This is why I don’t have a ton to say here that would interest people. I get home, get ready for my son to come home, help him with homework, off to his nightly activity, and then I put him to bed with a slight fight. By the time it’s all done, I’m at 8:30 PM and knowing that I can’t get any writing in. Too tired and I can’t risk staying up too late. So, I’ve been trying to prepare blog posts for June instead. This hasn’t gone smoothly either because it was busy at the school. I only wrote 4 posts and one of them is for tomorrow as a rant. This brings up the question of what I’m doing.
First, I’m losing Monday nights to the final 6 episodes (last one Monday) of ‘Into the Badlands’. I’ve noticed that a lot of my shows are ending like that one, Big Bang Theory, and Elemenatry. Lucifer comes back on Netflix, so I can watch that at my leisure. I’ll probably hit that once I get through the final episode of ‘The Defenders’.
This isn’t to say that I’m only watching TV. I’m also working on puzzles and tackled this one:
Sorry for the small picture. This is actually a tough one because it’s a lot of black, brown, and green. So, I can’t really pick out one section with ease to filter out the needed pieces. I tried with Darth Vader’s lightsaber and it didn’t work. The browns are different shades too and many of them have lines. I’m okay if I can get 20 pieces set in a sitting, but this is going to take a while. I should have started with the one I got of the Millenium Falcon. I can’t even touch the 2,000 piece puzzle because I don’t have a table big enough for the finished product. I did complete a 300 piece Pokemon one for my son and a 550 piece Hyrule map. They just need frames since I glued them.
Doesn’t really feel like an author’s blog here, does it? I really wish I could be more author than ‘this is my life’. I can’t even talk about the life stuff until the legal things are settled. I know people are tired of hearing this, but I’m really scared that this mess and me not being able to talk about it has killed my traffic. People were trying to give me advice and positive energy, but it was hard to take since we’re talking about the last 20 years of my life being pulverized. I’ve been trying to continue, but it’s so hard. Yet, taking any longer of a break makes me feel like the last 5 years of work will be undone. It’s clear that going away and coming back hurts. Not everyone returns to a blog, which is why I’m trying to keep it active. Nothing else on social media works since I’ve seen that high or low activity on Twitter get the same results of nada. The blog doesn’t get any sales, but it’s better interaction when I can get a conversation going.
And that’s the other issue I’ve been having. I’m up and running with only my iPhone to keep up with blogs. WordPress for the last month has been a nightmare when used on my phone. I’m either not logged in, can’t log in, or am logged in, but not really. I have to go through the app and that isn’t a guarantee. No way to reblog. I tried on Tuesday to leave all of the blog emails alone until I got home from everything, but then I was faced with well over 100. Much of what I end up seeing are reblogs too. There are other times where it simply won’t let me comment. This happens even on my own blog unless I go through the app’s notification and pray to at least 3 deities. It’s another strike to the heart of what I’ve tried to build.
I can write this and next weekend. I’ve been getting together with friends from work a bit more often, but I dig in for the actual weekends. I’ve got 5 chapters to go with War of Nytefall: Eradication and I might be able to finish it by the end of the month. I can get 1.5 done this weekend and 2 the next. I’ll tinker at nights for the following two weekends because those are son times. That might clear the rest. Need to make sure the June posts are ready too. Thankfully, my work schedule got changed a bit and I can do a little notebook work. I actually picked this up for my special project set up and I’ve got enough room to make a few notes on other series:
Next Sunday might be a post about an idea I want to play with, but I’m scared to do something like that. It feels like a promise when I can barely keep my current projects going. Bedlam and Ichabod Brooks are on pause for a long time. The summer job is going to be even busier and more time-consuming, so I’ll be using the nights and weekends to work on the blog and the special project. That’s the hope anyway because I’m seeing how things never go as I had hoped. Really wish I could catch some kind of break in some aspect of my life. Being the universe’s personal chew toy gets tiring after a while.
So, what are the goals for this week?
- Son time.
- Finish chapters 10 and 11 for War of Nytefall: Eradication.
- Finish at least 4 June blog posts.
- Work more on special project. I think I’ll mention it on Memorial Day weekend as a Sunday post.
- Try to get a bit more sleep.
- Move the bike into a spot where I can use it. I’ll get back on it some day.
- Do more puzzle work.
- Finish writing this post and get to writing.
Wishing a you a good week next week.
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Should be “wishing you a good week.” Also maybe the bike can go in the kitchen (Joke)
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Thanks. I’m almost tempted to put the bike in the kitchen.
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Ha haha.
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Charles, I use my iPhone and have problems commenting on some blogs too. Frustrating! I know you are faced with life challenges, and worry some followers will disappear if you don’t keep up blogging. Not me, and I’m sure your friend bloggers will hang in there! Whenever you post, you can count on us to read, like, and if time allows, leave a comment. I’d say put the bike in the kitchen too! 📚🎶 Christine
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That’s the thing. I have seen people disappear after I did the semi-retirement back in August. It was the like the instant I said I wasn’t going to be as active as an author as I was before, a bunch of people walked away. Traffic definitely took a hit and never recovered even after I said that I was going to try to remain active. A big part of this blog is helping to promote my books, so I need a healthy audience. With only a small circle, I can’t do much and it makes the writing harder to defend when people demand I do other things. There’s a domino effect here, which I feel like I’m struggling to prevent.
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Hopefully other blogger friends can weigh in on help to promote book sales other than through blogging. I’m finishing a first book draft and haven’t published yet. It sounds so frustrating to fit all your life’s pieces together and be an author! The domino effect is devastating! Saying good luck to you is definitely not enough! 😞🎶📚 Christine
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Thanks. I have tried various promos and other authors have attempted to help. We’ve all been wondering why nothing seems to work, which adds to the frustration. That isn’t even the lion’s share of things because of the life thing. I’d love to be getting more sales, but I’d be just as happy to keep myself even slightly afloat. It’s hard to get that when I’m battling this other thing. Makes it hard to be a happy person too.
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(shaking my head)…That life thing in the works has got to resolve one way or another. With what I think, all I can say is I’m on your side! Stay strong and this too shall pass! Hoping something greater will come your way! 📚🎶 Christine
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Thanks. I’m hoping that it resolves as positively as it can. Really looking forward to the day I can publicly define it. That will take some pressure off and probably clarify a few things for people.
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You have a good attitude about it. That’s a big plus! Less pressure will definitely help! 📚🎶
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I try. Though, I do have a lot of rough days that I don’t really share on here. Given the situation, it would be bizarre if I was entirely positive and maintained a perfectly good attitude about things.
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Understandable, Charles! Sometimes, when you’ve done absolutely everything you could in any given situation, it’s helpful to ease the craziness by maintaining a good attitude! Just sayin’ 📚🎶
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Fingers crossed for that. ☺️
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Is that a Ralph McQuarrie illustration on the Star Wars puzzle? Nice.
This has been an extremely rough season for you. I don’t have any advice, just prayers and well wishes.
I want that Lord of the Rings Moleskine journal! Searching Amazon right now!
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It might be. The box doesn’t mention the artist, but the initials on the picture are ‘RMcQ’. I got the journal at Barnes & Noble. They had a few different types and it came with a Cirth Alphabet insert.
I think I’ve officially hit a ‘rough year’ level. All of this was starting last Spring without me knowing it. At this time, I was facing the strong possibility that I would have to give up writing and was bracing myself for it.
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Wow. That’s hard. At least you’re hanging in there with writing.
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I do that thing where needing to wake up early makes me wake up even earlier than I need to as well. It’s really annoying. Since I have the choice, I now make appointments for the afternoon whenever possible, and as late in the morning as possible when not, so I don’t need to worry about getting up in time. Of course, I then do get up relatively early anyhow, but at least I mostly do so after a good sleep. In other words, I’m more likely to sleep a decent amount if I do it that way. Still no guarantee, but it increases the chances. I know you can’t do that. However, I’m not sure if this second plan is an option in your case, but I’ve found sticking to getting up at a certain time even on days when I don’t need to helps. Again, it’s still no guarantee, but sometimes the change of sleep schedule can cause a huge problem. I know it would mean you getting up earlier than you need to even during school holidays, but it’s an option. As a bonus, maybe you could use that morning time on non-school days for some writing time. Just a thought.
Anyway, good luck with the goals for the coming week. I can’t speak for everyone, but I personally like hearing about the daily life stuff. I’m told it’s the case for many others too. At least, that’s what I was told when I asked the people who read my blog, and I’m working on the assumption that they aren’t alone in that opinion. After all, that’s what made things like blogs and social media so popular in the first place.
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I wake up before my alarm all the time, but it’s turned into me simply waking up early now. Me making it to 7:30 without stirring is both rare and a sign that I’m exhausted. Not sure people are allowed to have a decent sleep schedule in this society. Unless they give up on doing anything past 8 PM.
I do wish I could say more about what I’m doing at times. It’s just that I like telling stories and I can’t really do that without drawing students and other teachers into the tales. I’ve already had a few people find my blog and books, so I need to be careful. Although, I don’t think anyone has bought any of the books. They just quote my bio.
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Despite how important sleep is, society really does seem to function on the basis that you can somehow survive without any. There just isn’t time to do everything, so all you can do is do your best to do as much of what you want to do as you can manage to fit in without sacrificing too much sleep.
Hopefully, when things reach the point where you can publicly reveal the life event, that will help a little.
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I think the idea is that you will find time to sleep and sacrifice other things. It’s work and sleep that take priorities, so relaxing activities like reading and TV watching are deemed expendable. Family time too since there’s the belief that you can always sleep late on the weekends.
Hoping for the end of the month, but we’ll see. Always a chance that things can go even further south.
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You have a lot on your plate. Praying things normalize for you soon.
I’m looking forward to Lucifer, too. (What a strange sentence. Maybe I should have added the word “watching” in there.) It’s been too long since the end of season 3.
Have a great week.
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I’m guessing this entire year is going to be chaotic. The next real break that I get is at the end of August. Even then, it might be busy. So I’m looking at late December? Hope Season 4 is a good one.
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I’ve slowed down on my blog too. I don’t post about my existing product all that often, but have tried to add some writerly posts about my current projects. I haven’t been able to write for three weeks now. Doesn’t leave me much to post about. Keep in mind this is part of the author lifestyle too. We’re people first, and sometimes life has other demands of us. I need to assemble a guest post today, then I should probably come up with something of my own.
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It gets pretty hard to find post topics. I’m still unsure of what I’ll do when the Bedlam story is done. Means a gap in the week, which might not be a bad thing.
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I did five out of seven days for a long time. I’ve trimmed back, but lack of interview candidates left me with a new hole. Blog numbers continue to grow, but the don’t seem like legitimate followers these days.
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I’m seeing the same with my numbers. Always more likes and follows than comments too. Shame you can’t get any more interview candidates. Do you think the indie author pool is running dry?
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No. I haven’t been promoting the interviews. Whenever I do that I get about a hundred applicants, and they get irritated that it takes two years to process that many. I’d like to do one per week, but they take time to do. If they go to two per month, that’s okay with me.
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Got it. Indie authors aren’t really known for being patient.
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I don’t blame them. Having a current book to push doesn’t allow a year long wait.
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True. I try to be patient for a few months to spread things out, but it does get harrowing as the weeks melt away.
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