@CathyTea Congratulations on this new phase/project in your professional life. I wish you the best of fortitude and accomplishment.
"CathyTea;15010340" wrote:
When you feel that your other involvements are asking for a lot of your creative energies, how do you manage to stay involved with Simming and Sim writing--or do you?
I actually find the busier I am, the more time I make for things in my life. Right now, I am busy with my husband, graduate school and my nonfiction blogging, my faith community, building new friendships, and job search. However, I find this forces me to prioritize and figure out what is most important and to schedule in time for things better. I've started keeping multiple calendars - one for activities/school, one for date ideas/time with hubby, and one for both of my blogs. The thought of 4 calendars may be overwhelming to some but this helps me organize and keep things straight.
In undergrad, I struggled with math and science courses. I had someone once wisely tell me that I am a wordsmith. I can reshape my reality and my frame of mind with words. Therefore, I needed to find a name for my math/science homework that wouldn't overwhelm and stress me out. I renamed my books "puzzles." Literally, I covered each book with brown paper and wrote, "Puzzles to Challenge Me." It seemed silly at the time, but it helped me profusely. I do the same thing with these calendars. 4 calendars seems like a lot and is overwhelming at times. So I renamed my calendars "gentle reminders" as a way of naming my reality. Nothing says I have to complete absolutely everything on each one of these monthly sheets, but "gentle reminders" is a soothing way to frame my mind when I go to tackle a project in one category or another.
I try to make an effort to read a little SimLit each week. I save a few links on my phone and read them when I have down time - standing in line at the store, waiting for my husband to arrive home, before bed, etc.
In terms of writing, I kind-of go with the flow on that one. Some days my post is done on Monday and sometimes it's written on Saturday. I've found in this busy season of life right now one post a week on my main story and a couple times a month (between 2-4, sometimes more if I have the time and creative energies) on my other blog. Find a schedule that works best for you.
"CathyTea;15010340" wrote:
How do your Simming/Sim writing projects feed your other creative involvements, and how do your other creative involvements feed your Simming/Sim writing projects?
I treat myself to writing SimLit or playing the game after I've completed a task/section of a project. I try and alternate between work and play to keep my life balanced. When I finish a paper for school or a blog article, I find I enjoy unwinding by writing Kass's story or another one of my Sims. To some, writing creatively after writing professionally may not seem like a break or relaxation technique, but I find it works for me.
I find other types of creativity help me feel relaxed - like my music for example - I'm a singer. I find singing once a week with my group and listening to music on a daily basis helps me feel relaxed and opens my brain to inspiration.
"CathyTea;15010340" wrote:
And one thing I wonder about... when my energies are being asked to flow into other projects, how valuable are my Simming and Sim Lit projects? Do they offer enough to me and to others for me to keep involved with them, or should I let them go? Do you wonder about this with your own Simming and Sim writing projects?
I adore your stories, so I would hope you don't give up. I'm sure your readers will understand if you need to cut back to once a week or even once a month. Whatever is easiest for you. I know how much you love the Sims and SimLit so I would hate to see you go.
Personally, I find immense value in writing my SimLit. I didn't initially, though some of that was because I wasn't wholly connected to the community. But I've come to accept the Sims as part of my lovely life, and I'm not worried about sharing with others now like I used to be. I find the Sims works as a creative outlet for me to break past writer's block in other creative writings of mine, and even through stressful blocks in my professional life. I also find I can't ignore the stories within my mind and heart as Kass's story has burrowed its way into my life.
Anytime a person puts effort and genuine heart and soul into a piece of fiction (or I'll open that up even more to include other forms of art) there is value. It doesn't matter if you only create these pieces of art everyday or once a week or once a month or a few times a year. What matters is that you make a genuine effort to share a piece of yourself with the world and that in itself is beautiful and valuable.
I recently read an article about the Benefits of Fanfiction
here if you're interested. I believe it applies to writing SimLit as it is a form of fanfiction in a way.
I read another article, which I won't share here because of the adult content on the site, but it talks about how writing fanfiction (and I'll say SimLit) gives you freedom to express yourself, separate from a market audience, allowing you to explore topics and concerns and ideas and issues without the pressures of conforming to a specific market in order to receive a paycheck or keep a certain audience engaged and it frees you up from the pressures of achieving perfection. It also allows you the freedom to work with characters without having to create something from scratch because in the Sims, many of the characters are premades, and the ones you do create still have game elements to them. I view the Sims as working with a piece of clay. The clay already exists but I get to shape and mold them into what I desire.
I find value, purpose, and worth in each digitally created character and I know you do too from reading your works, so I'd encourage you to find a way to keep going, even if it's only to drop in occasionally throughout the year. I hope this helps!
