February blog

This month, I took a bit of a break when it came to working on my project. Last month I put in 76 hours into the project with minimal returns due to my outline kerfuffle. So, I was feeling a little down about the project. I was 30 hours ahead of where I needed to be so I really only needed to get an additional 10 hours this month. I got 13 which is not bad at all. Instead of working every weekend for 8 plus hours, I decided to enjoy myself a bit. I did get plenty of work done this month, though. I worked more on my replacement outline and am nearly finished with it. I also did a radio show interview and got to talk extensively about my research for the book. I have not done a radio interview in close to 6 months now so I had fun doing that and realized that I do miss doing interviews, even though they tend to ask a lot of the same questions concerning my work, who I am, and how I got started. This month was also a good time to take a bit of a break because my advisor has been extremely busy with his newborns which were brought into the world at the end of last month. Things seem to be getting more settled and everything, so next month should be a bit more busy on both sides of the equation, but I think I chose a good time to take a bit of a siesta.
While this may seem anti-productive, I think I showed a lot of initiative when I decided to take a bit of a break. I was feeling frustrated and that the project was futile. I cannot produce good work when I feel like that, so I needed to take a break to recharge and get ready for the writing grind.
The highlight of my month was probably going on the Spectral Wolf Pack radio show for an interview. I met the guys on the show a few years ago at the Mothman Festival and they have been asking me to come on the show ever since, but this month was the first time I was actually able to come on, and I had a great time.
This month, I learned that it is okay to take a bit of time for your brain to recharge. I was going a little crazy with the project last month and I could not imagine doing another 100 plus hours of the project. But I took a deep breath, relaxed, and did not break myself over trying to spread myself too thin when it came to working on the project. I did a few things that I had not had much time to do since I have been working on the project and I am extremely glad I did. I am actually excited about the project again and can't wait to get cracking with the writing. I am most likely going to finish up this blog post and dive straight into finishing up my outline that has taken entirely way too long to get done, finally. I am glad I relaxed.
My main challenge this month was actually taking time to relax and breathe. I can sometimes be a workaholic when it comes to my research. I get obsessed about a specific idea and I will not stop until I get a solid understanding of the idea and I essentially figure it out. This month, I was trying to breathe some and enjoy myself and not get caught up in all the work. And I did succeed, but it was difficult. I was planning on spreading out the 10 hours I needed to stay on schedule throughout the month, but I started working on it on a Saturday morning and just did not stop until that evening. I can be a little obsessive about this stuff. I actually have been thinking about backing off when it comes to the paranormal after this project, which only makes my obsessiveness worse because I want to make this project perfect.
Like I said previously, I am looking forward to actually writing the book next month. I know I have been saying that a lot in my previous blog posts but I really am looking forward to it. I love writing and I am getting burnt out on the preparation stage.

The logo for the radio show I was on this month.