personal blog – Page 5

mini drawings = instant therapy

The other day I drew this small doodle (image below) in one of my pocket-sized notebooks that I carry around when I’m at work. It is only a simple drawing, as opposed to most of my other drawings, which can take me several hours to complete. I felt an instant sense of achievement when IContinue reading “mini drawings = instant therapy”

I’m feeling a lot better

I know that my last few blog posts have been pretty negative (with the exception of my last one). This is due in no small part to my mental state. As I’ve previously mentioned, I was feeling lost. I wasn’t doing the things I loved. I was dwelling in sadness. And I wasn’t really doingContinue reading “I’m feeling a lot better”

life is full of little new beginnings

Sometimes in life, all you need to do is start again. Often, the tasks you set out to complete get overcomplicated because you try to tackle too much at once. This has often been the case for me. I overthink things. I give myself too much work. I become overwhelmed. Working on multiple projects atContinue reading “life is full of little new beginnings”

have I lost my way?

I’ve been struggling lately. There’s no getting around it. Things haven’t improved much since my last blog post. The main thing that I’m struggling with is a newfound inability to begin. I know it’s often said that starting something is half the effort. I seldom struggled with starting things in the past; it was keepingContinue reading “have I lost my way?”

I need a break

My last post was a bit depressing, I know. It was difficult to write, and even harder to read back. But I felt better for writing it. It purged me of the negative thoughts. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still feeling an immense lack of motivation right now. I do not feel inspired to doContinue reading “I need a break”

I’m lacking motivation

Recently, I have been writing a lot about motivation and how stay motivated and inspired. Sadly, at the moment, I have been feeling the taut drag of demotivation. And as a consequence, I’ve been feeling overwhelmed. As I mentioned previously, I have finished my last edit of The Black Rook, and this has been sentContinue reading “I’m lacking motivation”

the black rook – update

I have finally finished my first edit run of The Black Rook with my publisher’s editor. It took me just over three weeks to complete, but it felt like much, much longer, I can tell you that! Now that that manuscript has been done and dusted (for now), I can shift my attention toward otherContinue reading “the black rook – update”

visual art vs creative writing – when worlds collided

Having finally got my scanner working again (although it’s still being a bit temperamental), I have been creating a few new drawings to add to my illustration portfolio. I say that but a lot of these drawings I create just to upload to Instagram and Tiktok. I think it’s important to produce regular new contentContinue reading “visual art vs creative writing – when worlds collided”

defeating sadness

One of the best ways for me to steer myself clear from sad thoughts is to keep myself busy. Recently, I’ve been doing just that by focussing on my creative writing and doing little else. I am currently less than 100 pages away from completing the edit run of my novel, The Black Rook. IContinue reading “defeating sadness”

dealing with grief

As I’ve said in several of my blog posts, 2021 was a real rollercoaster of a year for me. I had many victories (I landed a publishing deal for my first novel, and I travelled to Canada for the first time) but I also suffered a tremendous loss in the family. My dad passed away,Continue reading “dealing with grief”