Random Things

This is a Buda shrine I see pretty regularly on my long walk. It sits inside a circle in front of a house that is now for sale, and I suspect it won't remain there for too much longer. I wanted to snap a picture of it before it vanished. It's kind of wonderful gives the neighborhood a peaceful air. Yesterday, the copy of Seeing Like a State that I ordered came in. That's going to be some interesting reading. I've so much reading to do. I'm behind. I've a whole stack of books on the nurses that served in the Vietnam War that I need to read. I've been putting it off until I finish the Blackthorne edits. But given that I'm having to write more from Suvi and Ilta's PoVs, it might not be a bad plan to go ahead and read those--once I finish with the rest. So. Much. Reading.

As time passes, I think the thing I most wanted a break from (when it came to the Irish novels) was all the stress and insecurity about getting it wrong. Thus, causing more harm than good. In a sense, that never goes away, nor should it when one takes on problematic subjects. There's always someone who will criticize a work unjustly. (Not that there aren't such things as valid criticisms. That's different.) And there are those who will hold grudges no matter what. It's just best not to focus on that crap, or even maintain a connection with it. In all honesty, those sorts of reactions say more about them than it does about the work. And anyway, what is the positive outcome from focusing on that? There isn't one. The tough thing is that being a good writer requires that one be sensitive. Being sensitive means it's easy to get hurt. Moving on and remaining open is difficult. It simply is. But one must. All good lessons. Anyway, that's a convoluted way of saying that I'm glad I took this break. I needed it. Plus, I didn't want to be mashed into a box labeled "the Irish writer" because well...I'm not Irish for a start. Being an expert on Irish History should be for the Irish. You know? For another thing, I do want to write other stories set in other worlds. I want to write more within the Fey and the Fallen, mind you. I simply don't want that to be the whole of what I produce.

And with that...I should get on with the writing. Watching my  blood sugar has been helping with the migraines as well as helping with my ability to focus. I'm stunned at how much. So, yay?