By Susan L. Tuttle, @Susan_Tuttle5
Writing is never an easy task. It takes much research, dedicated time, and patience. You need strength to endure feedback and humbleness to admit when changes must be made. And it takes so much brain power. When you have to write during a difficult season in life, the tools you need are even harder to obtain.
I lost my mom in December. She’d had different health issues for a while, and I’d been spending a lot of time helping her and Dad navigate them. It’s a blessing to be able to care for those who’ve cared for you. Around Thanksgiving she fell and that led to nine days spread between her bedside in the hospital and then at home. Saying good-bye was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do—and I know that I am not alone in having to part with a loved one. Emotional exhaustion and grief are very real things, and they have no specific timetables. Yet life doesn’t stop, and we still have deadlines to meet. So how do you go about returning to normal life when life feels anything but normal?
You first admit exactly that—life is no longer normal. It has changed, and so have you. Build in rest to your days. Whether you are caring for someone struggling in your family or navigating a loss, these things take a physical and emotional toll, and you need to give yourself the same grace and space you’d give others near and dear to you. Rest is the first thing you need. This can be in the form of naps, long walks outside, reading a familiar book, and definitely spending time with Jesus. However you recharge, make sure you make time to do so and give yourself permission to seek respite.
Another important piece is being realistic with your deadlines and what you can truly accomplish. People often understand needing an extension as long as you communicate clearly. Study your calendar, and if things need to be changed, then be honest about those changes. Perhaps you can’t write at all for this season—that’s okay. Pick a date where you think you can reevaluate that feeling. Or maybe you can write, but at a much slower pace so you’ll need to bump your deadline out. Either way, you’ll need to readjust because when you are emotionally spent, creativity is stifled. Fighting against that reality will only frustrate you and those you’re working alongside.
Finally, realize that this is just a season. You’ll come out of it changed, but you will come out of it. And chances are, God will use what you went through to enrich your writing while also enabling you to reach others in ways you might not have been able to before. God uses everything in our lives, and while we don’t always understand our pain, there is always a purpose to be found inside of it.
Take a pause, find some rest, and come back to your writing renewed. It will still be there waiting.
Falling in love again wasn’t on her checklist, but he’s about to pencil it in.
Nate Reynolds’s ugly history has dogged him long enough. He has spent years reforming himself, but there has to be a purpose for all the pain in his youth. When he discovers the perfect campground for rehabbing juvenile delinquents, he sees his chance for redemption. Even if it means butting heads with the owner’s granddaughter, Gwen Doornbos, a woman who, for all her sharp edges, possesses a heart similar to his. The more time he spends with her, the more he envisions a future he once thought impossible.
Four years ago, Gwen Doornbos lost her husband at the hands of a troubled teen. Her dream of ministering to kids died with him, and she returned home to help her grandfather run their family summer camp until his retirement. That day has finally arrived, except her grandfather has other plans for Camp Hideaway, and they include the irritatingly handsome Nate, a do-gooder with more brawn than sense who insists on bringing the past right to her door.
When an accident requires Gwen to temporarily assist Nate, she discovers that the campers challenge her in ways she’s not ready to face. Yet if she can find the courage to stay, the darkness that has shrouded her for so long may lift to reveal a love arriving out of the blue.
ACFW Carol Award finalist, Susan L. Tuttle lives in the Mitten State where she’s a mom of three and happily married to her best friend. Between still homeschooling her youngest and leading the women’s ministry at church, she finds time to write stories filled with inspiration, hope, and encouragement. Connect with Susan at www.susanltuttle.com.