Balance

I’ve spent the last couple weeks thinking about what I want to achieve this year, and my ideas keep circling back to a singular theme: balance. I’ve spent the last couple years rebuilding my hopes and goals for the long-term and focusing on consistency in areas I care about, and now it’s time to make sure my approach to all these domains remains, well, balanced.

So what does my Year of Balance entail?

My Best Books of 2023

As I awaited the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve, I found myself watching a few book lists and tier ranking videos of 2023, and I thought to myself, “Why don’t I do that?”

According to GoodReads, I read 32 books in 2023, totally 7,732 pages.

So what were my best reads and why should you read them?

Consistency in Review

At the start of this year, 2023, I took a look at my life and decided the theme for the year should be consistency. In 2022, I focused on rebuilding myself–pulling together the pieces of a world turned upside-down by a global pandemic and revisiting my personal and professional goals (and in regards to my writing, how I want that personal goal to become professional). This year was focused on continuing that growth toward something more consistent: regular writing, positive work-life balance, and improved physical and mental health.

I’m happy to say I’ve had many successes, but I’ve also had a few misses.

So let’s look at 2023 in review.

A Holiday Like No Other

As I watched the first Hanukkah candles of the holiday burn low, I began to wonder why Hanukkah, unlike so many other Jewish holidays, has garnered the attention, the fascination, and the cultural importance that it has. In the scope of things, it’s considered a minor holiday–it’s not mentioned in the Torah, the Prophets, or the Writings. So why does the light of Hanukkah shine so much brighter by comparison?

November Roundup

November is always a busy month for me–it’s NaNoWriMo, students (and teachers) start itching for Thanksgiving break and the holidays, and this year was Fyrecon, too. So when I say I busy last month, I mean it! So let’s look back and see what happened.

Evolution and Identity

It’s been over a decade since I started this blog and nearly as long since I last updated its look. Recently I created a new logo, so the old paw print is out and the new wolf face is in. But aside from that small change, the site has been largely unchanged for years.

I think it’s time to evolve.

Origin Story

I’ve been entering the Writers of the Future contest for a year now, and I’ve earned three consecutive Silver Honorable Mentions. I’m eager to win, and sometimes I imagine I’m at the awards gala, giving my acceptance speech. What would I say? Who would I thank?

Every time I imagine this, it gets me thinking more broadly: What’s my writer story? How did I get started, and who were the mentors and supporters that got me where I am today?

So since it’s been on my mind, I’d like to share my own origin story.

The Peril of Yearning

When last I posted, I spoke about creative burnout. That was the last week before school started, so immediately after that, I went back to work. And, man, did time fly!

I still feel a little burnt out, to be honest, though I’ve continued to write, albeit at a slower pace. Only two new stories in September, which is still pretty good overall. I’m trying to respect where my mind is at and just write when I can. Deadlines also help.

There’s something more exciting to share, however: In the time since my last post, my first published short story appeared in print! “Deadlock Magic,” in the anthology Witch Wizard Warlock, is about a young witch with a big secret and the lengths she’ll go to in order to achieve what she yearns for–no matter how dangerous those perils might be.

I’d like to share a brief excerpt from the story:

The Creative Flame

Every story I write is like a candle: some are short, others tall. Some burn low and slow; others are bright and eat at the wick with abandon. What they all have in common is that when the wax is worn out and the flame finally withers, it’s harder than ever to start a new spark.

It’s a classic case of creative burnout. So how do I get back into it?

Talking Taboos

I’ve been told a professional writer should keep his politics and religion out of the public sphere. But for as often as I’ve heard this, it’s never settled right with me.

Why not? I’ve considered this a long time, and it’s time I explain why.