J.R. Pearse Nelson's Blog, page 5

Sometimes We All Need a Break

… and when you need a break, take one! Forcing yourself into the nitty-gritty may not result in the quality of work you’re used to producing. Let’s remember, this is supposed to be play. Stories are fun. If it isn’t fun for the writer, it isn’t going to be fun for the reader.

And another thing, this isn’t just about the quality of your written words. It’s about the quality of your creative life. Did you get into this to slog away your hours and your life? What exactly are you serving by showing up when you don’t have it in you?

Now, this isn’t permission to avoid your writing every day as your appointment with yourself comes up. You must make that appointment most of the time if you’re going to make progress. But sometimes we all need a day away. If you’re big on goalsetting and structure, set aside the occasional day for when you just (surprise!) need some time to think about other things or screw off completely. The key is to keep from waiting so long to take time off that you look like this…

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Yeah, that’s a stop sign resting in the arms of that thoughtful tree.

(No stop signs or trees were harmed in the making of this blog post…I just spotted this near my work & had to write to YOU. Don’t wait this long to take a break. Listen to your body & mind.)

Have a beautiful week!

Family Fun at Great Wolf

We’re super excited to be visiting Great Wolf again. This is our second trip and we had a blast last time. I’m going to spend the next two days splashing in the water park and playing Shadow Quest with my kids. The girls have been chattering about this trip for weeks.

On to family fun!! Let the Great Unwind begin!!

(Update: The Great Unwind has begun! By the time I had a chance to post this we’d already hit the pool!!)

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There She Blooms

[image error][image error]I spotted this rose today. It’s trying to bloom at the end of January.

Sometimes the most exciting and beautiful things in life come in the darkest season, when they are least expected.

Happy blue moon!

Finding the Joy Place

“Hustle” is the word for my household between November & February. The holiday season tends to be packed with events nearly every weekend with some part of our large family. And all four of our birthdays are in this zone, too.

I’ve had to learn energy management for this season over the last bunch of years. This year, I was particularly good to myself. I’m only now, at the end of January, feeling pretty stressed by the number of balls I’m juggling and the worry over dropping one (or three). So, when all of the clutter of events does start to stress me, I remember this is just one part of my year. This year, I actively sought out a joyful mindset and really embraced what the holidays are about — showing our people that they matter and we care about them. I also realized when I was doing too much, and pulled back to maintain my sanity.

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I’m not willing to spend my life stressed out by the natural cycle of things. Yes, it’s the holiday season and there’s lots of stuff to do. And that’s how I want it, because I wouldn’t change our large family, especially the momentary condition of having so many young kids around — it’s changing already; our kids and the nieces and nephews are growing so fast! When I get to spend time with them, I’m going to have fun and enjoy it. This is the good stuff!!

Yes, it’s the rainy season, which in Oregon lasts for seven months or so (by now folks have started to complain and we don’t get relief until May). The rain is a great excuse to make a big pot of soup and read a book. Look at all of this GREEN we get as a result.

Yes, it’s the middle of another busy school year. Coaching, volunteering, keeping up on what the kids are learning, fundraising…it all takes time. And it’s so important to show my kids that what they spend their days doing is important to me. That their learning is important to me. That I’m interested in their interests and what they’re doing about them. It’s important to show them that we CAN manage all of this with grace.

Yes, I don’t have a lot of time for ME in this chunk of the year. This year, I embraced it and didn’t worry about it until mid-January. And I think I’m going to leave January feeling healthier than I often do. As of right now, I’m trying to flip this mental script and remember: I’ve been doing important stuff, the part of my life’s work that centers on lifting others up and showing them how much they matter to me and my world.

These are parts of my life that I’m not willing to give up, change, or waste stress on! That’s my commitment to myself: I’m not going to stress over the daily details that add up to a happy life. When I start to stress, I’m going to find my joy place.

How have I been finding my joy place?

Well….no surprise here. I’ve been reading A TON. Cozy mysteries have been my fun way to cuddle up and de-stress during this busy season. I re-read Yasmine Galenorn’s Chintz and China series, and I read Sofie Kelly’s Magical Cat Mysteries. (And ordered a couple of new series, so apparently my cozy mystery binge is not yet at an end!)
I also started the show Parks & Recreation on Netflix. Ron is my favorite. I love Leslie’s eternal optimism and her dumb mistakes. This show just makes me smile.
I took a watercolor and design class with my nine-year-old. I mostly went to support my budding artist, since it was a class for people seven and up and I wanted her to know someone so she’d be comfortable. It was fun to think about the way our instructor talked about painting and how similar the mindset stuff is to the writing life. I ended up buying supplies and have been doing some painting and thinking about visual arts more than usual.
Walking in my rainy woods is another way to let the tension of the day slip away. I tend to open up and remember what’s important when I’m outside, with the fir trees towering and the wild turkeys clucking at me. We’re part of something so much larger than ourselves. It’s easy to forget that as a person who’s happy living in my own head.
In January, I re-prioritized my writing and got back in a productive groove. I’m almost finished drafting another novel (which is probably part of my angst these last couple of days). I did not attempt to catch up with goals I’d missed. Instead, I reset my goals in light of what I actually accomplished in the fall.

So…that’s how I’ve been finding my joy place and remaining a positive person when I have a bit too much to do. I’m so thankful for all the madness filling up my crazy life. It’s a beautiful thing.

Wishing you a wonderful winter, full of productivity and plenty of trips to your joy place.

Music Loves: Little Green Cars

I’ve been meaning to post about this band for a LONG time. They’ve scored a couple of slots on my “favorites” playlist that I listen to while out walking in my woods. Little Green Cars is an indie rock band from Dublin, Ireland. It’s a big group with amazing harmonies & thought provoking lyrics. And the lead singer Faye O’Rourke has a helluva set of pipes. I’m sold.

Be on Fire

Hi there! Happy Friday!

I had a wonderful conversation with my bestie earlier, and I got off the phone feeling PUMPED. We are in completely different fields, but there are a lot of similarities in what we’re each trying to build. Creativity, the need for conscious creation, and a business model that keeps the focus on where we want to be long-term. I’m always learning from her about business, vulnerability, and authenticity.

She’s recently revamped the offerings for her online business, Present Moment Expansion, and she’s really narrowing her focus to those people who are ready for what she has to offer. She’s consciously seeking out her tribe and figuring out how best to serve them. It’s incredible to think of where she was a couple of years ago. She’s continued to work toward an approach that makes sense for her, constantly learning and moving forward. Showing up steadily to do the daily things that make a sole proprietor business grow. Ensuring her business has the correct position in her busy life and not losing joy to the productivity hamster wheel.

But here’s what’s really exciting: hearing the passion in her voice when she says about her recent changes to her business, “I come away from these sessions ON FIRE!”

Let’s think about that for a moment.

Think about a time when you felt ON FIRE for what you were doing.

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For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream.

Vincent Van Gogh

Many creatives feel occasional bursts of this level of passion and spend much of their time trying to reattain that feeling. Much like addicts. Whether your substance is writing, painting, singing, rehabbing a house…. we are addicted to that feeling of being exactly where we want to be, doing that which makes us happiest. Inventing, making something tangible from our thoughts, our experience and our passion.

The funny thing is, the target moves. As you achieve what you set out to do five years ago, you have to reset and find the new horizon you’re aiming for. Don’t assume that the same type of creativity or work will satisfy you forever. If it does — awesome! And if you need variety to spice it up — also awesome! Do that new thing, seek out the answers to your new questions. Grow and LOVE it.

I hear from a lot of people that they don’t know what it is that lights them up. They don’t have a passion. If you feel this way, you’re not alone. But you can develop your passions any time! Here are some ideas to get started:

Consider journaling. Get out a blank page or whatever’s handy and set a timer for 15 minutes. Just write. If you MUST have a prompt, try something like “The last time I felt joyful was…” or “My favorite musician is …” and just go from there. You’re exploring. Just write.
Check out new-to-you Facebook groups that make you feel joyful and excited. What are they talking about? Which ones make you want to come back?
Create something. Watch a YouTube video on an art form you’ve been interested in and have fun copying their work. You can get basic art supplies anywhere, and that’s all you need to have some fun. The only problem with this little trial is that you’re bound to get lost in a million cool art videos. ALL COOL.
Allow dreams. Have FUN dreaming. It is a good thing. “If I had nothing to do in the month of February, what would I do?”
If you’re super private, make a secret Pinterest board and just start adding stuff that brings out the magic for you. Is it growing an herb garden? Volunteering at the local humane society? Collecting books to donate to kids programs? Is it the outdoors, or space, or history, or architecture, or engineering, or photography?

Follow that ON FIRE feeling. Be all lit up. Seek that out. You won’t regret it. And the rest of us can’t wait to see what you’ll do.

You can find my best friend’s offerings on her site, Present Moment Expansion, a page about angels, energy, and all things divine. That includes you!

Sci-Fi and Fantasy End of Year Sale!

Have a cozy winter (or escape the heat of summer) with a bazillion new science fiction and fantasy books you can pick up for $0.99 this week! It’s a GIANT end of the year sale.

My book Water Rites is one of many you can snatch up in the sale that lasts until New Year’s Day!

Wishing you a happy, prosperous and joyful new year!

My Romance Tilts Your Axis with Fantasy; My Fantasy Probably Has Too Much Romance

Gosh. I have writer problems. I fit less neatly into boxes than readers like. I can’t seem to control my need to blend these two genres. My fiction is almost as messy as real life. *wink*

I love romance and read a lot of romance; the structure is very pleasing to my writer brain, but I ALWAYS have to challenge myself. I love world building and fantasy romance seems to be where I’ve fallen in over time. I have written some contemporary and historical under other names, but don’t like either as much, for various reasons.

Fantasy is a huge playground and I love the sparks that fly when romance and fantasy both hit the plot hard. My books are fast paced, fun, adventurous. Story arcs that unfold over many books, with complete romances in each book. That structure is very fun for me, to plot and to write. Each couple plays their part in a drama that stretches over the whole series. I have a complete cast of characters to work with, many of whom will appear in multiple books; my romances include surprise and twists of the fantasy elements. They don’t fit the conventional formula.

But they do make me happy. *evil grin*

In fantasy, I can’t seem to write a plot that doesn’t include an element of romance! I have tried. In short stories I can easily pull off a fun story without kissing or love triangles or anything of that nature; but the romance element always creeps back into longer works. I try to tell myself this is the way with many of my long-time favorite fantasy writers, including Juliet Marillier and Jacqueline Carey. My storytelling roots are showing up here. However, my fantasy books don’t follow any romance formula in terms of the resolution of the plot. I do not feel compelled to include a happily-ever-after ending for fantasy books. I go where the story goes. I write an ending that satisfies me, but isn’t going to satisfy romance readers who need that HEA. Like I said up top, I don’t fit easily into either box. I just love stories and all of mine seem to include fantasy AND at least a little romance.

Okay, confession time. I love soap operas. One in particular. General Hospital. I started sneaking that show at the age of 12, any time my mother wasn’t around. I still catch up with an episode or two a month, just to stay in the character’s lives. That’s right…I’ve known many of them their entire fictional lives. That’s ridiculous to say, but I want to know what’s up with them. I love this about series. Catching up with characters through cameo appearances, seeing old characters come back and meet the love of their life — this is what’s always been fun about romance series for me, starting with Jude Deveroux books way back when.

I have a long history of obsessively following characters. I like series where characters show up again. I also have a love of cozy mysteries, and I think it’s for the same reason. I’ve recently returned to a wonderful series I read a decade ago by another favorite, Yasmine Galenorn. This is her Chintz & China series about a witch running a tea and china shop who ends up solving mysteries. Guys…I could read these all day. Every day. It’s as much about the secondary characters as the main character. It’s about the whole place, the ambiance, the desire to catch up with old friends and see them find their happiness.

I’m cool with this. I’m going where it takes me, even if that’s a blend of two genres I love into…whatever it is that I do. Right now I’m having fun with a new fantasy romance series, but as I’m only drafting book one, I’m not saying more than that right now.

Thanks for reading! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving if you’re in the states, and many blessings to you and yours if you’re outside the U.S.

I Don’t Know What I’m Doing. Here’s Why I Keep Showing Up Anyway.

Hey there! I hope this lovely holiday season is developing nicely for you. We’re happily making our holiday gifts, brainstorming ideas, getting the calendar squared away (huge, huge family) and probably already eating too much in the process. That’s just how fall seems to go around here; it gets rainy, I start making soups, and as cool weather comes I spend a lot of time in my kitchen.

I’ve had one of those afternoons where my thoughts won’t stop circling. I listened to two podcasts over the last day that stirred things up for me. They were the most recent episodes from the two shows I make sure to listen to every week: Joanna Penn’s The Creative Penn Podcast, and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing Podcast (links to the site of each show).

Joanna Penn had a futurist tilt to this week’s episode, looking at publishing in 2027. I love The Creative Penn partially because of Joanna’s positive outlook. She’s a great example of how your attitude can work for you. She looks for opportunity, she chases it, she makes her lists and checks them twice. Her mindset is 100% can do. And if she feels like she can’t, she has a remarkable aptitude for dissecting why and challenging herself to do it anyway. Listening to her helps me with my to-do lists — I usually come away with a couple of things from every episode that I need to think through for my own publishing. But she helps me as much with staying positive and focused on how all of these little bits we do along the way add up to whatever we’re making.

I’m going to dive deeper here….what you want to make is incredibly important self-knowledge. It is worth thinking about so that you can appropriately focus your energy, and make choices about what things aren’t worth your energy. Many writers I know started out chasing something that upon further reflection — or even achievement — was not the life that they wanted.

For a long time, I hoped for enough income from writing that I could leave my day job. But I realized along the way just how much work this publishing gig is — and I realized that depending on writing for a monthly income doesn’t jive well with my personality. I’m risk averse. I like to know another month of income I’ve counted on is going to arrive. So I’ve adjusted my marker, and before I consider leaving my job (which is a great job!) I will set aside enough income to pay my salary for a year, and I’ll have an average income that’s stayed at the level I need for at least two years.

And you know what? If that means I continue to work at a job that I enjoy, if that means that writing becomes the second paycheck and never makes up all of my income…that is a-okay.

I’m more focused on being happily productive every day and being present for the people who need me than I am on any specific yardstick of success with publishing. Being happily productive is the success. Our needs in terms of income are taken care of. I’m already there.

Whatever you’re making, you do it in small steps. It’s the consistent effort that builds something. If you don’t know where you’re headed — if you don’t have a vision for your ideal, that thing you’re shooting for, you have little hope of landing where you want to be. Set your vision for the long term, divide it up into manageable tasks you can actually accomplish, and start doing a little every day.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing Podcast featured Andrea Pearson (link to her Amazon page; she writes fantasy and nonfiction for writers). She’s one heck of a driven woman. I like it.

Cobwebs to Cauldrons

From cobwebs to cauldrons

Tonight is the night

To clean up your hearth

And make it shine bright

The harvest is in

The veil has thinned

Your ghosts may be haunting

Face them for the win

Share a laugh, share a fright

Share a toast and a bite

Remember the ancestors

It is Samhain night!

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A poem by J.R. Pearse Nelson

Copyright © 2017 J.R. Pearse Nelson

All rights reserved. This poem may not be reproduced in any form without permission.