Writer Wednesday: Writing through Adversity

Today I am going to talk about writing through adversity. At some point in our lives we all go through something that disrupts our lives, that knocks us for a loop, and that gets in the way of our writing. I have been facing such circumstances lately, and the writing aspect is certainly hard. I am a writer. It's what I do and when I can't write, well it makes me depressed and slightly crazy. Still, I have faced this dilemma before and I have learned a few things over the years.

First, give yourself permission to take care of yourself. Writing will still be there when your life settles down. If you are a mess, your writing will suffer, so take the time to get whatever is disrupting your life under control.

Second, for sanity reasons, keep writing when you can -  but write without pressure. Okay, sure if you have a hard deadline with an editor or publisher this might be hard, but if you need to ask for an extension. You are human and sh*t sometimes hits the fan, most people will understand this. The original release of Quest for Redemption was delayed by health issues for me and my editor. It still came out. Give yourself a break. Write when you can and what you can to keep your mind sane, but don't have crazy goals while your life is still crazy.

Three, ask for help. This one is hard for me, but sometimes if you ask for help in other areas of your life you can get back to writing.

Last, count each and every word as a win! Even if you write 10 words a week you are still writing. Be proud of that!

How do you cope when adversity strikes? Leave your coping methods in the comments!