My manuscript of the opening book of my series, The Enchanted Bookstore is completed, pitched, and submitted with fingers crossed and a sigh of satisfaction. Now what still pulls on my soul? All the noise has silenced. I love the verse of Rumi, the 13th c Sufi poet.
I promised my writing muse a vacation to allow her to regroup. She accepted with mixed reactions. Some days she begs to write what my main characters whisper to her, and other days she’s happy to wander and collect new ideas, like seashell treasures on life’s shore.
As she drifts, I’ve spent time catching up. The last stage of our patio remodeling called for my attention – landscaping. I love gardening and attacked that project with the same fervor I completed my manuscript. After a few days of planting bushes, potting plants, and hauling landscape stones, my muscles cried for reprieve. But, it’s a lovely backyard haven now where my muse intends to craft many stories. These pictures show some of my efforts with orchids and a few other tropical plants.
I’ve also caught up with friends and family who patiently waited for me to take a break. I made new acquaintances at the Florida Writers Association conference. My husband and I will be taking our first vacation in years to the Keys in a couple weeks.
A break from writing doesn’t ever mean a halt to all writing. I’m working through a backlog of demands for short stories and promotional shorts for my February release, Tears on a Tranquil Lake.
Once I’ve satisfied these necessities, what still pulls on my soul? My spirit loves the outdoors -- biking through parks and beaches. One cycling trip this week put me face-to-face with a wild boar, the first I’d seen! It was so big I had to look twice to be certain it wasn’t a cow. Also, becoming a better kayaker on the lagoon in our backyard is high on my list.
I’m also guarding a bit of time for neglected hobbies – watercolor painting, knitting, and reading. I’ve painted for decades, but have a few too many northern snow scenes for my new Floridian home. A dear author friend and avid knitter suggested I explore a knitting website, Ravelry, warning me it was a huge world that would suck in me – it is and has! Now, if I can only shorten my stack of books to read!
I was thrilled to write and finish my last manuscript, happy to have a break, and am eager to resume crafting the next book in the series. Life is good.
2 comments:
Sounds like a well deserved break, although not relaxing. You certainly have enough to keep you busy. Your patio is gorgeous.
It's been a much-needed break and I'll soon be ready to submerge into creating a new novel, feeling that life hasn't passed me by or my family hasn't given up on me. :)
Thanks for stopping by, Roseanne.
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