Healing

I wrote today for the first time in awhile. After finally finishing the paper that was due, I had just been sort of struck by the impulse to write, but without the time to do so. Mondays are nice because they are a day to myself, the barn is closed and I am home alone with the dogs.

I started by reading the first few chapters of the Norwood story that I started years ago, editing dialogue as I went but for the most part really pleased with my work. Since it had been so long since I touched it, I felt like I was able to read it with fresh eyes, and when I reached the end, I wanted more. So I kept going. I wrote for hours, lost in the story and the characters and away from the troubles of this world. It was cleansing and empowering and just what I needed.

Having finally recovered from a stomach virus that hit me as soon as I touched back down in the states, the last few days have found me dealing with some sort of head cold. Can't I just feel good for an extended period of time? The lack of energy that comes with feeling bad is not good for my mental state, since it leaves me with too much time to sit and think about the past. Or worry over the future.

But today was good. I was alone, I dealt with it, and I feel better. And I have missed writing, I have missed it so much. The neatest thing is that I can take the experiences I've had - like going to England and seeing the old cathedral at Bury St. Edmunds - and apply it to my story, because in the story there is a city in ruins and now I have actually seen something I can compare it to. Likewise, I've studied significantly more history from the same time as my story takes place than when I started, which helps with the small details of every day life as well as things such as warfare and religion.

I feel more prepared now and more inspired to get this story written. It's been in me for years, the characters and the land and the plot, and I feel like right now - in this moment - I can finally get it on paper and make it a reality. And who knows, maybe one day I can look back at this experience and say that going through this is what finally allowed me to turn my dream of becoming a published author into reality.