September was... like a see-saw.
...And yes, I partly mean that it had ups-and-downs.
There's a lot of writing advice out there. Like, a lot.
So much so in certain online spaces that sometimes you wonder if anyone's not writing about writing.
But then, I'm writing a blogpost for a sub-series called 'The Writer Diaries' so I'm clearly standing in a glass house and holding a rock, about to lob it over my head. 😅
A lot of the writing advice I've seen around on the *waves hands* general interwebs lately has been about writing routines.
Which wouldn't be a problem - writing routines help a lot of people.
Except more than a few of them have given me the general impression of 'OMG if you don't have a writing routine then you're writer-ing wrong!'
And? Honestly? F**k that.
So weird.
August was a month where I had multiple migraines, so that sucks.
But it also was NOT meltingly hot (unlike the first days of September...) so I'll take that! 😅
I know some people were complaining that the skies were dull and not as sunshiney as August normally is, but honestly, if the temperature stays down then I don't care!
(Me + Heat = Angry Bear! Lol.)
Yes, I'm a book blogger. Yes, I write reviews.
And yes, somehow I lucked out and reviews are some of my highest-traffic content, despite the fact that I write way fewer of them than I intend to.
But I don't review everything I read. Far from it.
There are people who do that - and that's amazing, I admire you so much.
But I can't.
I just can't.
I don't have the energy or the time. And I'm trying not to do the work-myself-into-an-early-grave thing. With varied results.
And whether or not I'll be reviewing your book (metaphorical author who may or may not exist,) will be based on a bunch of factors - because you know that I don't have just one reason for absolutely anything.
(Warning: this post references the affects of Depression/Anxiety)
(Warning: this post discusses chronic illness and ableism, as well as negative stereotyping. It also references grief, mental health problems, and Coronavirus/Covid 19)
So - the world is on fire.
Like, literally.
The UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, released this week, is bleak.
The outlook on climate change is bad. Humans are the cause.
We may already be too late to fix some of the affects, we're running out of time to stop others.
We need governments and industry to make massive changes. Fast.
(Warning: this post briefly discusses Coronavirus/Covid 19, and vaccinations/needles)
July was way too fricking hot.
Like, climate change is real - summers were never like this when I was a kid. And while I'm the wrong side of 25, under 30. So some time in the last 10-20 years, things altered majorly with our weather.
It's not normal. It's not pleasant. It's gotta be some sort of punishment from the world for our collective environmental sins.
June was awful.
I lost my grandmother, and everything is just that little bit harder, y'know?
I know a lot of people have been through some sh** in the last year and a half - but that doesn't make it any easier.
(Warning: this post discusses Coronavirus/Covid 19)
May was one of those in-betweeny months - as lots of months have seemed to be lately.
Here in Wales we had a Senedd/Parliament election, allowing Mark Drakeford (aka everyone's uncle,) to form another consecutive government, and giving him the mandate to continue with his cautious Covid approach.
It also means that while Labour's struggling nationally, Welsh Labour are the strongest they've ever been.
Which means that while England is increasingly voting for the Conservative party (the party our current Prime Minister Boris Johnson leads,) which is the party on the right of UK politics, Wales are sat here being a Socialist democracy and happy with it!
(This is your regular reminder that Socialism =/= Communism, Communism is a form of Socialism.)
"Holy sh**!"
These are the words I've just written on paper. Hand-written, in ballpoint pen, in my multi-coloured Crayola notebook (all the cool kids have them! 😉😎)
They're words I've given to one of the characters from my Work in Progress (WIP), Dan, as he realises something ground-breaking that makes everyone look at the situation entirely differently.
...It's a sentiment I fully endorse, because I have no clue where this plot twist came from.
And, with wide eyes, my only statement at this moment can only be an echoed, 'Holy sh**.'
(Only I can't swear because my mother, so it was more like 'Holy...' and then trailing off.)
(Warning: this post briefly discusses Covid 19/Coronavirus and Lockdowns, and mental health problems)
April was a mixed month.
Not only did we have snow, hail, rain, and blazing warm sunshine on the same day, but the uncertain opening-up after Lockdown etc. still meant that things felt hecka odd.
We're in that odd position where we're (hopefully) beyond the worst of it, but it's also uber-important not to move too fast, y'know?
(Warning: this post briefly discusses family ill health, mental health problems, and Covid 19)
So, dearest nerdlets: March!
March was better for me personally as Nan's health, although still exceptionally fragile, has been a little better and more stable. Hopefully it'll stay that way and/or keep improving.
(Warning: this post briefly discusses the day-to-day affects of Depression/Anxiety)
Some of you might think this blogpost topic (i.e., blogging ideas) is a bit of a cheat – which, honestly? It kind of is.
But… that’s kind of the point? I guess?
No matter how long you’ve been blogging, you’ll have moments when you just don’t know what to blog about.
Either because your brain is producing nothing but white noise in answer to your increasingly frantic requests for blogging material...
...or because you can’t seem to string your ethereal ideas together into something readable, or at the very least coherent.
(Warning: this post references Covid 19/Coronavirus, and Depression/Anxiety)
"How old are you then?" the adult asks; she's jolly, I do not appreciate forced jolliness. It's inauthentic.
"Six," I say... only it comes out 'thickth' because I've lost some of my baby teeth, and I have a decent gap between my front teeth anyway.
"Thickth," the adult responds, laughing.
I really do not approve of this mocking.
(Warning: this post discusses Coronavirus/Covid 19 and mental health problems)
We are two months into 2021. Just two months.
I have nearly lost my Nan twice so far in 2021.
Covid (which she had in January) has been so damaging to her health... it's awful.
If you're one of the people who thinks it's not that bad, or it's a hoax, or it somehow doesn't apply to you, then you can fuck off.
And yes, it kills me to write swear words without *s, but I'm leaving it in.
(Warning: this post discusses Coronavirus/Covid 19)
On a personal level, January sucked. Bad.
My beautiful Nan got Covid, and combined with her other health problems, despite the fact that she had very few symptoms, we nearly lost her.
There are very few things more distressing than watching someone you love slowly fade away via video link.
Honestly? If you're STILL not taking Coronavirus seriously, you can fuck the hell off.
And, dearest nerdlets, you know how upset I have to be to swear without censoring myself.
I really wanna delete a few letters and add *s, but I'm not gonna, cos despite the fact that I'm a nice well-brought-up Welsh girl, that's how annoyed I am, and how much you suck if you're one of the selfish people who still isn't taking precautions.
