"Catch you guys on the flippity flip!" — Michael Scott
Catching a maxi mini break from Substack
Dear hopeful reader,
For several months I’ve been ping-ponging between taking a break and continuing writing. Sometimes waiting it out pays off, but that hasn’t come. Since last summer, I’ve been feeling meh and bleh and sometimes blehrable, which is a bearable state with a touch of bleh. I’ve also experienced losses in my life, strange situations, and thus mourning, which you know can feel like a tornado sometimes.
To certain degrees, everything takes its toll. If I’m on a treatment plan for a certain condition, it takes time for me to get used to it. Sometimes it hurts me while healing me—the dichotomy! The seasonal shifts and especially winter make me feel weird and not quite there and then.
While I got better at understanding the monthly changes in my health, I still need a more sustainable balance that won’t cause me more overwhelm and burnout. Sadly as passionate and happy I am about writing, it takes me out. After I finish an essay, sharing deepest parts of my thoughts and experiences, I’m burning up feverishly and want to lie like an amoeba star on my bed—indefinitely. (Granted, I would want to be an amoeba all day every day. Or a tardigrade in space.)
I decided to finally take a break for a month or two from creating on Substack. More than that, I’ll be better at adjusting to my physical needs and take breaks when necessary. As much as I have so many ideas itching to be scratched, I need to be there for myself and the essentials in my life.
To have a healthy balance between creating and healing, I’ll be posting on a less frequent basis but with greater intention. The schedule would probably be biweekly or monthly, maybe sporadic and/or erratic. However, I’ll ensure to write my best work, always with a dash of hope. My goal with my space is to continue featuring guest posts by amazing fellow creators, too.
So as the great Michael Scott (more than) once said, “Catch you on the flippity flip.” By the way, did you know The Office: Superfan Episodes exists? I can’t wait to rewatch the show and the cut content. Probably on my break! In the meantime, please enjoy some guest posts, Substackers, and some of my content below.
Also read: “I’ll be back!” — Michael Scott
Guest posts
I highly recommend you check out the brilliant work by fellow creatives I showcased on “when hope writes,” part deux. Part one can be located here. They have been:
Claire L. Smith with “Book Covers: Mistakes to Avoid for Authors & Designers”
Peter J. Kenvin with the analysis of Observer
- of and with “Professional tips from a newborn girl”
- of with “On asking ‘what if?’ And what could have been if it really mattered...”
Rehan Qayoom with “Anaïs Nin: A Pageant of Phantoms”
Mariya Khandros with “Mr. President”
Craig Rodgers with “The Latest Model”
So much more goodness yet to come in a few months, so stay tuned!
If you want to be featured on my Substack, please contact me on LinkedIn or my website. I’ll respond to you as soon as possible!
Other recommendations
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention some incredible creators on Substack. Please go read their work and subscribe to them.
- of , especially with “Lamb ♣ LGBTQ+ Serial Fiction”
- of , especially with “Lacuna”
- of , especially with “Foto Friday 11 – RGB Aliens”
- of , especially with “A Hong Kong Story”
- of , especially with “When You Say Anthropology...”
- of and , especially with “Risqué Business: Taiwan Review”
- of , especially with “Dancing In A Supermarket”
- of , especially with “Yi Yi”
- of , especially with “Virtual Photography: An Explorative Six Part Series | Part 1”
- of , especially with “Yes, Let’s Go Back to the Fair”
- of , especially with “...becoming Owl”
- of , especially with “The Beauty of Skyboxes - Feeling Small in the Vastness of Video Games”
- of , especially with “The Boy and the Heron”
- of , especially with “Preface”
- of and , especially with “Thursday Thread: February, the Month of ❤️... When was the last time you felt truly grokked?”
- of with “One Man’s Repot Lot”
- of with “My spouse is sober... I’m not”
- of , especially with “Confessions of a Coffeeholic #1”
- of , especially with “Let’s Talk About NFT Books”
Amelia Rasmusen Buzzard of
, especially with “The Writer’s Life in Book Recs”- of , especially with “Writing rules and techniques don’t work for me.”
- of , especially with “The misalignment of good intentions”
There are so many more, and I’ll give them a shout-out in future posts and restacks.
Best hits
If you’re new here or you want to read something by me again, these posts seem to be a crowd pleaser right now for some reason.
I also compiled a more extensive list of my writing. And the archive can be found here.
Cult classics
Some things age better with time. Maybe these posts will too. Give them some love and they just might become cult classics!
Gratitude
Much gratitude to everyone who reads my work via their email provider or the Substack app. And thank you for the invigorating encouragement and inspiration in the comments, with the restacks, your messages. While I certainly would always write, it helps to know others resonate with my writing.
Goodbye à la poetry
I don’t know how to say a goodbye that’s not a goodbye but an I’ll be back soon-ish, so here’s a poem. When I wrote it, I dedicated it to my husband. But, I feel it’s applicable to any kind of relationship.
I adore the Substack community for being so nurturing and grounding and rooting. So today, I dedicate it to you all—my beloved trees, flowers, and fungi. I’ll be missing you, but not for too long.
trees lore
when two trees meet / on muddy soil / their roots entwine / beneath the earth / they love / & nurture / & protect / it’s how you see them / reaching for the blue skies / how their cherry flowers bud / then burst into the air / how they coat themselves / in green / & when they become / cascading hues / of yellow / orange / red / collectively / they know / it’s time to sleep / before you / i was elusive / it’s when i met you / i could feel / threaded / my hands reaching / for yours / like interlacing lianas / feeling myself / grounded / i rooted / in to you / even further / beneath the earth / our roots entwined / reaching deeper / for the core / & beyond / to love / to nurture / to protect
I’ll catch y’all on the flippity flip!
Yours hopefully,
Nadia
Hugs!!! I hope you’re able to get some rest, my dear sweet friend! Thank you for the shoutout and I hope this writing break rejuvenates you the way that photosynthesis rejuvenates plant life, specifically trees! Thank you also for your friendship-it means the world to me and I’m so glad to be able to “grow roots” along side you and everyone else that you gave a shout out to💜💞
Sending you all the love, Nadia! And thank you for the books! I still haven’t gotten ahold of them, but my parents are keeping them safe for me. I’m available by email if you want to chat, just like you were for me when I was taking a break. Cheers, take care of yourself, and know we’ll be here, eagerly awaiting anything and everything you might write!