Welcome to the page that houses the 2020 #GBWritesWithOthers guest blogging initiative! Established in April 2019, it was created to help boost writers at all levels in their careers through pure community effort.
Views and topics are those of their authors.
Nobody said starting out as a debut author was going to be easy. Especially with a small, dynamic, but still relatively new press. I was prepared to put in a hell of a lot of work, between the launch of my debut SF Humor novel, ALWAYS GREENER (also here on audiobook), back in February 2020 (that was at least three or four years ago, right?) and the sequel, THE RUDE EYE OF REBELLION, launching in eBook and special edition hardcover on September 22nd, with the paperback and audiobook coming in early 2021.
But that all changed when 2020 attacked.
Since then, it’s been a bit of a scramble to make the best out of the situation and limit the damage. Here are some of the tidbits I’ve learned so far.
When I meet new people, I get asked one inevitable question:
"How do you find time to write with five kids?"
I'll tell you right now—This is small talk. They aren't actually asking, just like "Nice weather, huh?" doesn't require anyone's opinion.
This means my answer can be equally simple.
"I make it a priority." Bam! We're done here—next topic.
But WRITERS, they want to know. This 2020 quarantine had even me asking that same question.
...Only this time, the answer was:
I can't.
As an extrovert with 30-some years of experience being an introvert, remaining apart from the world during a time of global crisis should be easy. I can keep myself busy with writing and editing, video games and movies, cooking and baking. But this time of pandemic and stay-at-home orders is different. I’m not staying home because of PTSD or undiagnosed gender dysphoria. Rather, I am home because I am medically vulnerable, and going into public means risking my health.
Thankfully, I am adaptable. That has been a strength throughout my life. Whether I was in the military, moving from state to state, or coming out as trans, I have adapted. So, here’s a look at the things adaptation has taught me during this pandemic.
My brain broke during the second month of self-isolation. There was a tipping point between a grey and miserable spring, the heightened societal anxiety about COVID, and me trying to complete a first draft of a novel that was a struggle. I went from writing 3,000 semi-decent, unpolished, words in an evening to 500 garbled words.
I’m a big picture thinker. I like systems, processes, and patterns. It’s one of the reasons I write ridiculously long series—they have long arcs, nuance, and complexity.
