The Ghost Reappears

hey. hi. hello.

Okay, so yes, I did accidentally disappear again. One of my many specialties. I’ve mostly been busy with the master’s program and sulking in front of my computer and burying myself in delicious romantic fantasy books that I’m way too embarrassed to talk about. Just a few more months of chaos, I keep telling myself, then I can sit my butt down and focus on my writing.

I’ve been trying to find the motivation to work on my current work in progress (WIP) — an intense dark academia themed fantasy series that has taken up a whole lot of space in my head, but not so much on my word document. So, instead of attacking that word document, here’s a list of things that inspire me to write:

Music, specifically the Pirates of the Caribbean theme song, but I will settle for any movie score. A close runner up would be the Lord of the Rings: Concerning Hobbits. OH, and How to Train Your Dragon: Forbidden Friendship.

Nighttime, especially when I know I have very important things to accomplish the next day. That is when my biggest waves of inspiration hit and nothing can stop me from staying up all night to jot down my MC’s quirks and pet-peeves that will never be relevant to the story, but necessary for me to document.

Driving. Look, I know it’s horrible for the planet, but nothing gets my gears turning more than a nice long drive listening to Pirates of the Caribbean as loud as my Honda Ridgeline’s speakers can handle.

Reading, but that’s a given. I just finished We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal and that book was, first of all, written so eloquently, in a style that I only one day hope to master, and second of all, told such a beautiful, unique story. She has definitely been added to my top five favorite authors. The other occupants of that title are Sarah J. Maas, Jay Kristoff, Tahereh Mafi, and … that last spot changes frequently.

Scrivener!!! It’s something about the organization that just, ugh, makes my brain happy. It lets me create different folders for different things — right now I have one for primary chapters, secondary chapters that don’t have a home yet, characters, secondary characters, places, maps, lore/legends/inspiration, and side stories! If you love organization then I definitely recommend. It’s been a really strong motivator for me.

I jotted this poem down tonight, which I call: My Over Dramatic Pep Talk

dream as if the nights
weren’t haunting.

write as if those hauntings
weren’t real.

think as if the futures
weren’t daunting.

live despite how much
you have to heal.

While I’m quite fond of nighttime and the productivity that comes with it, I also find it haunting. The part between being awake and falling asleep, when the world is extra quiet and the overthinking begins. The second stanza is to remind me to write despite whatever I may be going through, turning these hauntings into a work of art.

Anyways, that’s all I have for today. I’m happy to be back and doing something creative with my free time. Have a wonderful day afternoon evening and don’t forget to drink water!