What have I been doing this past year? What I haven't been doing is writing. My personal life started turning into a Lifetime Television for Women movie so I focused on the Real World and writing took a back seat. I know one day I'll turn all this drama and life experience into a novel. But not now. Too soon.

When I wrote my women's fiction novel, I had the habit of waking up each morning at 4:45am, making a pot of strong English tea and writing until 6am when the family got up. My days aren't as repetitive now and I got out of the habit. I live on the edge of the woods now and some days (most days) I'd rather take a walk than sit at my dining room table and write. But, this past week, things changed. I started writing a Christmas romance short story that hopefully will be published in an anthology with one of my publishers,and slowly, painfully, the habit of writing has returned.

During my writer's block, writing was a source of guilt. I knew I should be writing but I just didn't want to. There were so many other more fulfilling things to do. But writing always stayed in the back of my head, looming over my to do list. And even once I started writing again, I kept finding ways to procrastinate (like writing this blog!). It was hard, to be frank. That cliched phrase 'like pulling teeth' comes to mind because it was painful to sit infront of a blank screen and try to create, remembering how easy it was years ago when I did this everyday. Well, it finally came back. Last weekend, the words started flowing again, and I got that feeling that I used to have, that I had for years, that my characters were following me throughout my day, even when I wasn't writing, and giving me ideas of how to plot the story or how they would react in certain situations, or giving me new plot bunnies to follow on their merry way. And I love it.

I've decided to focus on short stories and romantic comedies for a while. The women's fiction novel on hold for now, but I want to brush off the New Adult (I need a new opening!). In the meantime, I'm glad I'm back. It's good to be here. And hang on, there's more to come. :)