@efa7d71c I understand, too, what you mean about relationships that aren't working. Fortunately, the cats recognized which relationship they thought was working. 😆 

Be careful with that knee. Take it slow. Your body will thank you both mentally and physically. I also started yoga during lockdown in 2020 and still do it every day.

Though I live in a small city, I'm fortunate that I have a walking path outside my door and nature but a short distance away.

https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/111/165/788/719/432/608/original/7a6c8b1e771943a9.png 

 @43b5df12 @d73175df "Second career" is a great way to describe it! This is the career that's for US, the one that fills our souls instead of draining them. 

 @efa7d71c Your last line should be on banners everywhere. Yes! I even started hiking this year.

Resigning on your birthday...I love that! Sorry you had to go through the marriage breakup. Adapting to life alone is its own challenge—I know.

The toll a job can take on someone mentally is underestimated. I'm well acquainted with depression, but have found ways to move on, like hiking, walking, and more. I hope that you have too. 😃 

 @3b678e16 @5a43dd67 I'm sorry to hear about your brother. I worked part-time in an assisted living facility for two years. There were few men, and those who were there, it was as if their entire identity had been erased after they retired. It broke my heart. Always have something you can expand upon after retirement. Build a freaking boat and sail around the world if you want. 🤨 

 @5a43dd67 Quite frankly, that's better than those I've seen who retire and die within a few years because they can't live without the job. That's tragic. Counting days until your escape is healthy. Keep counting! 🤨 👍 

 @d73175df It is, and it's never lost on me how fortunate I am to have the time. i have a lot of decades to make up for and am determined to do so.

I do balance it with hiking, walking, and yoga. It makes me sad to think there are those who retire and sit in front of a TV waiting for the end. These are the best years of my life. 😃 

 @d73175df Thank you! I do too, as it happens. There's so much happening, and so much that's already happened (revealed over the series), and she tries so hard, but struggles. Thus, her need for other people. As it happens, she's better at helping others than she is at helping herself. 😃 

 @2ee95d3f That was why I started tracking my time. I was able to devote vast amounts of time for the various NaNos, but too often languished otherwise. 😃 

 @c122552e I hope your life is put back together as much as possible soon. As I recall, the house is ongoing. I know all about medical complications. The stories I could tell—but won't. 😆 Then again, my mental health thanks me for the life I lead now. 😃 

 @efa7d71c I also retired early and have a vast amount of time for writing, but for managing my health, which is the best it's been since before I retired. You're right, it's amazing what it does for a person's outlook and forward thinking. 

 @5a43dd67 You have to retire at some point. At least, by writing now, you're ahead of that curve. 😃 

 @21149f3e Thanks. I'm just unhappy with myself because it's obvious I mistook it for something else and deleted it, which was sloppy on my part. The challenge is less about replicating what I did and more about not beating myself up about making a mistake, which I did yesterday. Today, though, I have a much better attitude. In the scheme of things, it was a minor error. 😃 

 @21149f3e You should also build off it, use it as the basis for various length blurbs you can use depending on the situation. I created a file like that and yesterday discovered—it's gone. Somehow, I deleted it. Not my best day, but if I could create it once I can do it again. 😃 

 @ce78dee8 A history that's lies or, at the least, distorts facts. Imagine that. I'm chuckling because there's a little bit of a parallel there with my own series. Beyond that, of course, the tales are quite different. 😃 

 @21149f3e That blurb is well done. Believe me, I read lots of them on Amazon that are simply baffling (which doesn't bode well for the book). You tell a lot in a few sentences and aren't cagey about facts the reader needs. 😃 👍 

 @a3976b27 @5a43dd67 It's an easy question to ask, especially if you aren't a reader. What separates the innocent questions from the "dumb" ones for me is their tone. On the one hand there's genuine interest, or even innocent ignorance. On the other, there's condescension, disdain, or even misogyny. 

 @b7ab5d68 For the first time, I saw a praying mantis last year. I bent down to take a picture of it and it turned towards me as if to say, "Come a little closer, human, and I'll rip your face off." 😆 

 @66e742bb I can still remember the jerk's face who said it, though I can't remember the context of our meeting—except that it was brief. There was more than a little (and unmistakeable) misogynistic undertones in the statement. 🤨 

 @21149f3e I might write shorter chapters, but I read books with long or short chapters because, in the end, it's the story and characters that matter. 😃 

 @5a43dd67 "How many pages" makes me think of the Steven Wright joke about how he's writing a book and has all the page numbers written. 🤣 

 @66e742bb A lot of people left their imaginations behind when they entered first grade and can't even remember what a game is. 😆 

 @21149f3e I think we're wired a certain way, that our brains have a natural proclivity to write certain length chapters, certain length books. No matter how long or short my drafts, my books eventually end up 120-135K long.

Genre also matters. My impression is that what you write is more along the lines of epic fantasy than what I write. There's no right or wrong, only differing styles that are akin to writing voice. Variety is a good thing. 😃 

 @21149f3e Those short ones are few and typically occur when events are happening quickly. Most of mine average around 2K. 😃 

 @7cf9957f I figured you thought it was a dumb question or that it didn't apply to you so you decided to spin the question to suit your needs. I thought that because I've done that. 😆 

Quite frankly, yours was a more interesting response than most everyone saying basically the same thing, including me. 😃 

 @66e742bb Well, since *you're* the only one who's brave enough to ask... 🤣 

It isn't linked to horror (unless you count how Verker was treated for 15 years), but it is life threatening. I can tell you this because what's suspected is revealed in Ch1, but Verker doesn't learn the truth until this chapter.

Verker, the younger son of Kurss Rendcide, is gender spirited. His lone value to his father is as a sacrifice to earn her continued good favor & prosperity from the Dominion gods. 

 @a3976b27 @ce78dee8 Typically in my stories I write found families & the encourager role is shared. In other books, it's my MC who needs encouragement and finds it where she can. This is the one book where a character is basically a family founder. 

 @ce78dee8 It's such a mess when that happens! 🤯 🤣 

 @ce78dee8 Odd as it may seem—or not—my upbringing was virtually devoid of pep talks. They just didn't happen. In a way, Tharlise was born of that childhood longing, the imagined talks that never happened. I really hadn't thought about it until you mentioned it. Did I just blow my own mind? Possible. 😆 

 @ce78dee8 Let's give it up for Uncle Omah! 👏 😃    👏 😺 

 @a3976b27 We are on the threshold of a great revolution! 😆 Another aspect I like is that it constrains, making it more difficult for my chapters become rambling affairs. 😃 

 @ce78dee8 Those are great. 😃 👍 

 @a3976b27 We do the same. When I used to write in distant, before 2015, I had breaks. After I switched to a deep POV they didn't feel right, like I was stepping in and forcing a break in the middle of my character telling the tale. 😃 

 @ce78dee8 Yes, that months long break is like a spotlight. That's when I most often realize I could remove a portion of the story and it wouldn't make any difference, or the couple of minor elements that are important could be shifted elsewhere and the rest could go. It's about being a doctor and making your patient healthier. 😃 

 @99964f0f "The story is the only darling that counts." Excellent! 👏 😃 

 @66e742bb Good for you! In the end, it's story that matters. 😃 

 @091f4e87 Was the hangover research done after purchasing the mead? 😆 

 @5c918f10 Gray foxes can climb trees, in case you ever need that. 😃 

 @66e742bb Gore and socks. Now that's an interesting pairing.😃 

 @21149f3e No worries. I'll testify on your behalf at your trial. Alchemy symbols...there's a great one, and one I've looked at a bit. 😃 

 @66e742bb Hope you feel better soon! Do take care. 🤧 🤒 😷 

 @bad99022 By all means, get them out! 😃 

 @2ee95d3f Ah yes, the NaNo spell! That's probably why I did 8 of them. 😆 Then, I'd walk around in a daze for a day. Last year was my first non-NaNo since 2014. 😬 

 @b573d167 I agree with your definition. It means your love for the story being greater than your love for any particular element within it. When I drafted Buried Remembrances it was 180K. It's now 135K & a far better novel. Those removed bits? I agree again. I use them in blog posts to show how writing can improve, & for other reasons. 😃 

 @21149f3e So, if I'm understanding, you didn't care for your job? 🤣 

Too many jobs mean selling your soul one minute at a time, like slow motion death until there's nothing left in retirement.

How fortunate that you're an escapee and don't even have to be on the run. What a great husband you have! 😃 👍