So much of writing for me is sitting my ass down and writing, even when I don't want to. I have really good discipline. I can write for fifteen hours straight sometimes, and then revise and edit for days and weeks afterwards. The hardest part of writing I can do and have done since my first workshop back in 2002. The other crucial part of writing for me involves psychological and emotional maintenance (aka self-care), which is just as important. Normally, self-care for me means not only exercising, meditating, getting enough sleep, eating well, and going on dates with LB every week, but also ignoring my own negative thinking and putting myself out there again and again (even when it feels POINTLESS) and not getting discouraged (even when NOTHING is happening), which has been particularly difficult this summer.
Read MoreI Hope, Therefore I Write
I just sent query letters for my novel The Amnesia of Junebugs to Katherine Fausset and Jim Rutman and I'm wondering whether being in Argentina will positively or negatively prejudice my chances of getting a top-notch literary agents. Considering how many agents don't accept email queries, it seems like a bad move I admit. But I'm hopeful that Beth de Guzman will eventually help me out or that something else will work out eventually. I still hope because I'd stop writing otherwise.