Earlier this year, I gave myself several weeks to finish up my next book. I mapped it out on a paper calendar. I knew it was a short timeframe—it felt unrealistic and stressful!—and I still gave it a shot. Unfortunately, I was right. 

While I didn’t get to finish the final draft of the book, I did make good progress on it. I found out where it wanted to go. 

Recently, new personal and professional projects have come up that needed my attention. I still made time to work on the book, and it wasn’t enough to make progress. The opening had closed, and I thrashed to re-open it. I felt dissatisfied and drained leaving each work session, rather than energized. The book needed more from me, more than I could give for now.

In therapy, I discussed my work on the book, and the metaphor of a relationship came up. The book needed more attention, and my life was full of other commitments already. Maybe we needed to take a clean break. No checking in, no research or writing, and no progress.

Restraint was a focus of the previous year, and it remains so this year. After a few weeks of taking a break from the book, I feel the adjustments working. I worried that this meant I was giving up on the book, and that I’d wasted my time and energy. Instead, I feel confident that I’ll pick the book back up again in the future. 

If I want to truly make an opening, and give the book the attention it needs, then it would be best for me to stay focused on finishing up the projects on my plate right now. In the meantime, I’m glad to practice my writing here.