Sowing New Creative Seeds

My projects are all in a weird state of liminality.

For Every Bell that Rings, even though I published it through my direct store two weeks ago and some of my fans have bought it, it doesn’t come out on retailers until next Tuesday. And that’s when the proverbial “proof in the pudding” becomes apparent.

Despite the fact that I launched a Christmas book in October, when absolutely no one wants to have Christmas anything advertised to them, there are some pre-orders coming in, which I’m glad for. And there’s a lot going on in the world right now—not least of which, the US Presidential election, which is also being held on my retailer release day of November 5. (Do I know how to pick my dates, or what?)

Anyway, I’m already doing all I can do to get the word out, so behind the scenes, I’ve been moving full steam ahead on other projects.

Last week, I finished and released a new sock knitting pattern on my other website. (Check out the Adventure Socks, if you like that sort of thing.)

This week, I’m diving into some client projects, and I’ve been trying to nurture my creativity when working on my own projects. What I mean by that is, I’m trying to keep the fun and play in my creative work.

That may sound like an odd thing, but as a lifelong creative entrepreneur, I’ve spent my life in a perpetual cycle of taking things I love to do and turning them into businesses. And when you do that, it’s very easy for that creative activity you love to become a chore, not a joy.

I usually love my work, even when it’s hard. But through the last few years of trauma recovery and healing and perimenopause, I’ve often done creative work despite how uninspired and exhausted I feel, not because it’s a thing that fills me up.

I’m in a good place right now. Not least of which from finishing two whole projects in less than a month, but also because there have been some significant moments of healing for me recently. I would like to keep the upward trajectory. So, being mindful of how much finishing things gives me joy, I’ve been thinking of ways to change up how I do things.

My cute office buddies definitely help in the mental health department. Korra on the left, Aang on the right.

Is it weird to say that I’ve been anticipating and dreading my upcoming Rise of the Grigori book in equal measure? I mean, I’m super excited to be diving back into this world—writing about mermaids, dragons, magic, good vs. evil, adventures, and epic stakes is one of my favourite things, ever. I also love the massive amount of research this series requires, because I adore learning.

(Seriously, it’s a problem sometimes. This week, I spent several hours learning how to make clay, ceramic, and gum paste flowers as research for my next Peace Country Romance book, Every Rose that Blooms, which was a planned and justified learning session. But yesterday, I also spent several hours learning all about Machu Picchu—just because it happened to be the lock screen photo when I got to my desk, and I was suddenly curious about it. I definitely had other things on my list to do.)

BUT, what’s filling me with dread is knowing that, more than likely, it will be two years before that book is published. One, if everything goes perfectly, which it never does, so two. It just takes a long time to write eight hundred pages.

That means that, if this is the only project I’m working on, it will be another long time before I get that thrill of finishing and publishing a book.

So, here’s what I’m going to try, both to keep my creativity fresh and to allow me to publish a little more regularly:

• Move my own creative projects forward five days per week. For the past few years, I would usually plan to work on producing my creative work only a few mornings per week. The rest of my time is spent on client work and doing admin and marketing work for my business. I want to make my own creative projects a priority every weekday morning. Even if I only spend ten minutes on them because of other deadlines, I want to keep them moving forward.

• Mix up the projects I’m working on more regularly. Instead of feeling like every day has to be about doing the same thing, whether I’m ready to move forward or not (because sometimes, the hardest work on a book like the Grigori books is thinking and ruminating), I’m giving myself permission to rotate through different projects any given week or month, depending on how much thinking time I need. I’ll have two main writing projects to work on (Every Rose that Blooms and Rise of the Grigori Book 3), plus I’ll occasionally work on a knitting pattern. And, just for fun, I’ll throw in some art or even short fiction once every week or two to give my brain a break on those other things and do something totally different to keep my creativity fresh.

It’s that last idea that I think is going to make the most difference—to allow myself to dabble in other things intentionally, instead of my brain always doing it as some sort of rebellion when I’m feeling stressed out or overwhelmed.

Actually, I have done a bit of that for the past year already (and it has made a difference). I post the fruits of those efforts in the Books and Tea League—for free. In the Fireside Lounge, you can get access to fun art projects I’ve played with, and you can find short fiction I’ve written in Story Bites.

Speaking of the Books and Tea League, earlier this week I posted a bonus that was a little different—a little “podcast episode” discussing the Rise of the Grigori series. I was playing with a new AI tool for writers to help organize your notes and work (basically a story bible you can query about your own work), and one of the tool’s features is to create a podcast-like discussion of the sources you give it in order to aid understanding and retention for the user. (It’s often easier to remember something you hear in conversation than just read on a page.)

The end result of that initial experiment was so fun that I posted the eleven-minute episode in the Fireside Lounge. If you want to listen to it, go here:

That’s it for this week’s ramblings, my friend. Please remember to order or pre-order Every Bell that Rings (or, if you’re local to me, come to the Peace River Farmer’s Market tomorrow to get your copy).

And I would love to know which book I’m working on that you’re most excited to read: the next book in the Peace Country Romance series, or the next Rise of the Grigori story?

(By the way, both of these ongoing projects will be available as early access serials in the Books and Tea League once I get past the planning stages and into drafting. Just sayin’.)

Happy Friday! May you have a fantastic weekend!