Seasons of a Writer’s Life

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. – Philippians 4:11-13

Do you remember when you first started writing?

I do. In those days, I had boundless enthusiasm and so many ideas. I could happily daydream about my characters for weeks—plotting through scenes as I cleaned at work and even sometimes when my poor professors were lecturing. (Sorry!) These first stories were so thrilling to me, and I couldn’t wait until I had time to jump back into my document and continue typing away in another world.

And then sometime around year three or four, things became not as easy. I didn’t have as much time to focus on my writing—university became a bit consuming—but in lulls of the school year, I would keep working on my projects. These were historical fiction—Civil War, 18^th century England and America—and modern-day books about ballerinas and musicians and doctors.

This timeframe was also when I began publishing, and editing opened up a whole new world for me. The freedom of typing away a story without thoughts over how to fix every single sentence,  how the plots just didn’t make sense, and how this scene was unnecessary filler were long gone. I gained an editor in my head. 😊

And then last summer, after graduating from university, I ran into the biggest case of burnout I have ever experienced in my writing. I had grand plans for publishing last summer, but I could hardly get through a few pages of editing—that dear ol’ editor in my head was just too strong.

So I took a break, and it was so needed—the Lord knew I needed to rest and to give up writing for that short period of time. And when that was over, I dove into a brand-new project that ignited my imagination for a few short weeks until I started a new job.

Fast forward to today … and things are very different than they were in either of those stages of my writing life. During the last school year, I could only find snatches of time to write—too many of my brain cells were taken up by work. Even when I did find time to write, I was too tired. My creative juices were simply drought-burdened.

There was light within this writing darkness, though—during breaks from school, I would begin having the slight itch to begin writing again. (Honestly, breaks from school are so helpful!) And even sometimes when I didn’t feel like writing during the school year, I would—and I made some decent progress.

But in this, I found it’s so much harder to focus on a fictional world when the trials, joys, and sorrows of the real world are much more present in your face. However, these real-world experiences make us better writers—my heart aches more for my characters now, believe it or not. 😊 My writing, hopefully, is more realistic now that I’ve lived through more of life.

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There are so many different seasons of life—and that includes our writing. It’s okay if you don’t have that burning passion to write anymore. It’s okay if you’re in a season when all you can do is keep your head above the work of today, whether that’s homework, taking care of children, or endless amounts of work for your job. All circumstances can make us better writers, even if we’re not writing at that exact time.

And in the end … remember where your writing is in the grand scheme of life. Just this week, I was discouraged with editing and all that goes into publishing a book. And then truth smacked me in the head (thank the Lord). Why was I looking to writing to make me happy/fulfilled, etc.? Writing is a gift from God, but it is not what should ultimately make me joyful. And then when I stopped looking at editing/writing (and success therein), wow … things were much better. As Christians, our ultimate Source of joy and fulfilment isn’t in this world—it’s in Christ.

And through Him, we can do all things and be content in all circumstances—whether we are writing like the fury or completely detached from the writing world.