By what cruel twist of fate did we North Americans stack the Christmas holidays (with all their attendant business), New Years (with its desire to become an improved human being), and the Winter Solstice (with it’s fulsome darkness) into a two-week period? Can I assume that the people who decided we’d be maximally busy in the winter don’t suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder?
This is at least 80% of the reason why I’ve been quiet here so long. The other 20% has to do with a cockatoo, a velvet dress, and some lubricant, but you wouldn’t be interested in that story now, would you?
Who am I kidding? If you’ve hung around here long enough you probably a) would be b) will forgive me for making that teaser up. (Though it would be a good beginning for a story, wouldn’t it? Hmmm.)
Today’s post will be brief and comes courtesy of a SAD lamp, my treadmill, and necessity. I have two Writer Unboxed posts to mention today, Zesties.
The first is TODAY’s, and comes courtesy of a reader who sent me a letter with a question she trusted me to answer. (Thank you, Anonymous! I’m touched you reached out.)
If you’ve been frustrated at your writing speed and want a way of looking at it differently, please visit To the Disconsolate Writer Who Hates Her Pace. While you’re there, if you have a question you’d like me to try to tackle in another post, please feel free to leave it in the comments. Alternatively, email me through the contact form on this page.
The other link is from WU a month ago: What’s a Pantster to Do When They’re Stuck? Go Tell It TO the Mountain.
Don’t fret about the delay in notification, ’cause the subject is evergreen.
Mountains? Evergreen? Get it? 😉
Ah, that’s okay. I’m blog-rusty so you’ll have to forgive me dipping into the pun file.
How have you been Zesties? What was your favorite moment in the holidays? Do you suffer from SAD? If so, what remedies do you rely upon?
[message type=”simple”]If you’d like to receive notification when I post new content on Tartitude, sign up here. Or connect with me on Twitter (@jan_ohara) and Facebook.[/message]
So nice to see you back!!! Winter can be hard. Despite the cold gray sky, I’m trying to walk outside most days, which seems to help. And I’m riding again at a local barn. Dragging myself there even when the temperature doesn’t break 20 is worth it.
I’m so happy for you that you’re riding, Liz.
I’m *supposed* to be dancing, but this bronchitis interferes. Soon, though, soon. Music helps, too.
You knew you had me at “Australian”. 😉 Of course, if you live in So CA, as I do, amid the sunshine, warm weather and beaches, then it’s a pretty good substitute for the summer Xmas holidays I grew up with, and no SAD in sight. However, I find that holidays are what you make of them and this was a meh one. I resolve to make a better one next year where I don’t rely on others (read: teen children) for my holiday happiness.
Yes, I’m sorry your holiday was such a challenge. Relying on teens is always a dubious prospect. 😉
We had quite a lovely break, actually, though it was dark and excessively cold. BUT, the days are already lengthening, so I’m probably out the other side of SAD.
Hope you’re okay with all the California drought. The news makes it sound scary.
Now, about that cockatoo, velvet dress and lubricant – I would not want to be inside your brain! Where do you come up with this stuff? It slays me. When I stopped laughing and got onto your SAD comment, well, all I can say is extra Vitamin D works for me. This year it’s not so bad, but that’s because I’m in the UK and definitely not missing the snow.
You’ve had tumultuous weather though, haven’t you, Vicki? Are you enjoying your stay overall?
As for my brain…yeah. A weird place to be at times. 😉
As an Australian, I can tell you that Christmas during the summer is no picnic. Well, I suppose it is a picnic — but only because it’s too damn hot to eat inside the house. After suffering through 43C (110F) weather the last few days, I can honestly tell you that if I had a bucket of snow, I would have climbed into it. Naked.
All that aside, I totally hear you on the SAD thing. Even here in beautiful Australia, I suffer with it in the winter months. The best “remedy” I’ve found is to force myself to go outside for a walk for at least an hour every day — rain or shine. (I actually bought myself a dog to force me to do this. If I was going to do it again, I’d buy an alarm clock instead.) It doesn’t necessarily fix the problem, but seems to make the symptoms more bearable.
Oh, and by the way? You totally have the right sense of humour to be an Aussie. So tell me more about this cockatoo….
Thank you for the reality, check, Jo. 😉 I spent one Christmas in LA. While it felt like a holiday, it didn’t feel like Christmas. And that temperature? Oy. I don’t envy you that!
INteresting about getting SAD in Australia. That shows my ignorance, because I was under the impression it was a North American phenomenon–not because of anything scholarly, but because of assumptions.
Walks and exercise are my medicine, too. Unfortunately, at present, we’re having a freeze-thaw cycle that makes the sidewalks treacherous. But soon that will change. Soon. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by.
The article questions if will your slow pace matter. I think it does. My first novel was published in 2011. Three years later I’m finally finishing my 2nd one! I’m assuming it will take a year for it to see the bookshelves. At this rate, I will have to live to 176 to write all the books I’d like to!!!
I think it matters too, Connie, but I don’t think one becomes faster by indulging in self-loathing, self-hatred, etc. Quite the contrary.
“At this rate, I will have to live to 176 to write all the books I’d like to!!!”
I hear ya. Don’t think that would change if we wrote 4 books a year, either. 😉