Sometimes the grey, wintry days, like today, drain my energy. Left feeling lethargic and somewhat foggy, the fight for motivation is on. Because doing any focused task is hard. And that’s the moment when I know I must just hold on.

As a writer with a day job, ‘just holding on’ is a mantra that gets me through most days. Especially on the days when I write—whether I’m working on a novel or blog post—and time feels short. It’s not only that the writing feels uphill, but ...