Over the last few years – between life’s ups and downs, autistic burnout, postpartum depletion syndrome, and a worldwide global health crisis, I found myself struggling to show up for my writing, and my creativity.
I have been doing a lot of introspection, and examination that I feel is pretty indicative of 30s (with or without the side of lockdown) and I have found myself questioning a lot of how I approach literature.
In my late 20s, I adopted the mindset of “I will not write unless inspiration strikes.” Leaving my very ADHD brain to choose an all or nothing modality. I could go days or weeks without a single word, to nights of furious writing – – churning out 4,000 or 6,000 words in a matter of a few short hours.
So when crisis hit the world stage, and my children’s dad was on the front lines of healthcare in one of the worst hit hospitals in Seattle, it really is no surprise that my creativity trailed off. As time wore on and the hits kept coming, it was harder and harder to open up that writing document and set words upon the page.
Then in July of 2021 my world came tumbling down so completely I was not sure how I was going to rebuild. My creativity fled, more than just no writing, there was no painting, or sculpting, or photography. Dance, which has remained a constant in my life since I was 3 was summarily abandoned. I escaped in other’s works, unable to face my own.
The last few years have been intense, full of growth, learning, and re-imagining. I finally feel like I am at a place to give back to myself creatively. Recently I saw a post on Pinterest about a Write 365 day challenge. I have modified it a bit to suit my writing.
Starting tomorrow, September 1st, I am challenging myself to write something every day. I have prompts that I can use to inspire, or I can continue on a work I have already written for the challenge. I don’t care if I write a sentence, a paragraph, or a whole short story. The goal is to start exercising my writing muscles more consistently. I have prompts that are outside my typical wheelhouse to help stretch different muscles as well. I will be sharing my work here to hold myself accountable.
All Jazd Up 