Wednesday 29^th July 2020

There’s always this weird disconnect when you finish a project. It’s a bit like when you finish a book that stays with you or you move off a moving escalator. There’s a momentum that’s built up that wants you to carry on, yet there’s nothing to carry on.

Whilst I can work if there are tasks that need doing, if I’m leaving a world or a bunch of characters, I need a few days. I’ve heard some writers talk about this as a process of mourning, but for me it’s never anything quite so drastic, although first drafts leave more of an impression that rewrites.

And so, I usually find myself quite restless at the end of a project. I want to start something new to occupy the time and feed the habit of writing, but at the same time, my head is still in that world with those characters.

So I’ll usually use this time to recharge. It’s a time to play games, do something else creative, and decide what next.

That’s usually a harder question than it might at first seem. I have a sequel that needs a second draft based on the revised outline I did, but part of me wants to write something fresh. I have a third book that needs a first draft, but I’m wary taking on a big project if I’m going to need to stop to work on something else.

So at the moment, I’m milling over ideas and chilling out playing some Warcraft.

I did my first* twitch stream yesterday for a couple of hours. I had fun, even if the viewers were next to nothing.

I realised something during the stream. My focus should be on the bronto and the 5 million I need to buy it. I can do a bunch of repetitive tasks and do that, or … you know… I could have fun.

One of the things I love about Warcraft is the diversity. If I want to craft I can. If I want to run dungeons I can – either solo through old content or in groups at max level. It means that I don’t need to buy loads of different games to scratch different gaming itches.

The downside to all this is that it’s very easy to do a lot and not make a lot of progress. To achieve goals in Warcraft, you have to be disciplined and organised. I’m not that, and when I am, I lose a bit of the fun. I’d rather dabble with gold making one week, professions the next, achievements the week after, etc.

On the plus side, it means there’s a ton of content if I want to stream regularly.

I doubt I’m going to forge a new career as a twitch streamer but It’s all good practise speaking and a way to decompress after a couple of months of heavy writing work.

*I did some twitch streaming back at the launch of Legion but not done any since.