Yesterday, I finished a story. This may seem like no great shakes, but I had taken a month off from writing fiction so I could focus on the dissertation. I was worried about skills going rusty and the loss of momentum. I'm pretty disciplined about my craft. I really had not taken a break from writing since 2004, due to very dire financial circumstances. But for about four years now, I've kept a pretty dedicated pace. One reason was that when I took that break four years ago,  it  did hurt my writing. I lost my rhythm. I was writing bad stuff and couldn't seem to get excited about anything.

Much has changed since then. I survived Odyssey. I worked hard to become a better writer. My craft developed. I challenged my self to improve in a host of ways. I wrote a story a week for three months. I've had some good publishing success so far this year.

Yet the fear remained. Until I finished the story.

 I didn't feel rusty or out of step or anything. In fact, I found a better way to end the tale. The ending to this story had eluded me for months as I banged my head against the keys. But stepping back, coming at it when it was nowhere near as close to my mind, turned out to be an advantage.  And it sure beat grinding myself into frustration.

This doesn't mean I won't get back on the horse and try and keep the same "go go go" Ridler attitude that has served me so well in the past. I still think I do better when I keep busy. The more you write, the more you learn. But I won't worry about easing the gears now and then. Sometimes walking away for a blip gives you the strength you need to finish. Just don't use that as an excuse not to work hard!

JSR

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