A Very Special Episode of Randomology

June 29, 2011

Okay, I need a break.

No, really. I don’t mean an “Oh, let me catch an episode of No Reservations,” or “I think I’ll play one game of Angry Birds” kind of break. I mean, I need a real “don’t do anything break.”

Charcoal Streets is going on the backburner for a bit. It’s been a year this month since the first story came out, and I’ve been writing and editing almost non-stop since then. Except for a few days here and there marked by personal tragedy or holidays, it’s been near-constant grind.

And I am about to explode into a hydrogen-fusing fireball of pure stress.

stress by ~Pilokio on deviantART

Over the last few weeks, I’ve tried. I really have. I told myself I’d detox a bit, listen to music, go to work, and just pound at the keyboard until something, anything, appeared. I told myself that if I kept a solid writing schedule, if I tried to keep the writing as so many other authors said I should do, eventually I would have enough to work with, I could edit the hell out of it, and I’d have the story I wanted to tell.

Truth be told, it’s been a HEAVY strain. I mean, I’m starting to DISLIKE my stories, and I don’t think I’ve improved them much, especially in the last month.

I need to look at the with fresh eyes, and as much as the perfectionist in me wants to just keep at the anthology, the rational side of my brain is telling me I need a break like a California fault line.

This won’t affect the blog in any way. Except…

Change 3 by =WhisperedGrace on deviantART

Okay, here’s the deal. I’m going to publish regular articles, but they’ll be around 400-600 words. Tops.

Seriously.

And I mean it this time.

Except when I REALLY have to make them longer.

Links will go up on Tuesday, Thursday, and maybe Saturday as I bring back Divine by Zero. It’s been a while, but I think I can bring it back to keep up with all the weird crap out there and give me more time.

The other reason for the changes is that I’m looking for a second job. That’s going to cut my writing time, both for the site and my personal work, in half. I think I need to get into the habit of writing less and saying more.

Here’s hoping.

Stay tuned tomorrow for the first Divine by Zero article in… nine months. Holy crap.

And now, to finish a day of painful self-awareness, I give you one of the only good things from Mirrors (aside from Jack Bauer, demon hunter): the soundtrack. See you tomorrow.