IWSG Post for 1 April 2020

We are in a time of plague, but even so it’s not the end of the world. (At least not yet.) So as with every first Wednesday of the month (although here on the west coast it's already early Thursday, so my apologies for posting late) it is time for another Insecure Writers Support Group (IWSG) post! In an IWSG post, we writers bring our writing challenges and problems out into the open to share with each other and try to come up with solutions.

The IWSG question for this month: The IWSG’s focus is on our writers. Each month, from all over the globe, we are a united group sharing our insecurities, our troubles, and our pain. So, in this time when our world is in crisis with the covid-19 pandemic, our optional question this month is: how are things in your world? In answer to this, other than an occasional (an average of once a week, maybe), quick trip in town for the absolute essentials (e.g. groceries) and a very short daily walk outside for fresh air, I have only left the house to work at my day job which has been declared by our state officials as essential service. But, since this is a blog hop about writing, I’ll move on to writing in relation to the pandemic.

So, things in my writing world during this pandemic can be better. I’m not used to having all this free time from being off from my day job, which has been reduced to one day a week, and so I’ve been really lagging in my writing schedule as well as my household duties. Even though because of my work status I had to ask for vacation time to practice social distancing so as not to risk having to come in everyday or getting temporarily laid off, I did so merely for the reason to practice social distancing. So instead of sleeping in so much I should be going to bed earlier rather than reading too late into the night and I should be getting up earlier to keep a good writing schedule.

I have been writing of course, but I’ve been holding it off until the late afternoon. Also, because I’ve been emphasising enhancement of my blog so much I leave myself with too little time to work on my fiction which is, ironically, the writing I enjoy doing most. So, I’m working on getting to bed earlier on my days off from my day job and getting up earlier to get a more efficient writing schedule in.

As far as more positive things happening in my world as a result of this pandemic goes, as a science fiction writer I’m getting some good ideas for stories especially when apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is so in right now! For all we know, these genres can be the fiction that these events have been fulfilling and so it may be prophecy. Not that we should have wanted them fulfilled. Maybe we should have taken them a little bit more seriously to be better prepared for this plague? I can’t say for sure since I am not a prophet (at least not that I’m aware of) and I’m definitely not God/dess. But maybe when we look back on this crisis in the history books we’ll find out that, because of (post-)apocalyptic science fiction, we were more prepared than we might have been. Sometimes we just can’t tell until the event has ended for a while and so only history can tell.

They say that all good literature and art comes out of a time of crisis. So, I’m optimistic that that will happen with the present day situation. That said, I suggest during this time to not despair or panic, yet stay healthy and wash your hands among other things to stay as clear as possible of this virus. In addition to these, write well and let this time of crisis inspire you to do so.

Today’s IWSG is brought to you by these super co-hosts: Diane Burton, JH Moncrieff, Anna @ Emaginette, Karen @ Reprobate Typewriter, Erika Beebe, and Lisa Buie-Collard! IWSG was founded by awesome author Alex Cavanaugh, writer of the Cassa Series of novels!

How are you handling the pandemic in terms of your writing?

Until next time . . . And there will be a next time!