It’s Hiatus Time…ish

Hello, loves! Sorry to pop in with another post that’s basically just going to be a quick explainer of why it’s hiatus time for me and this blog. We all know hiatus means taking a break, so no need to explain what it is. But, you know me, so I did want to explain some of the behind the scenes context. Also, explain the “ish” part of the title.

So, let’s touch base briefly!

Context

So, this hiatus is prolly not a surprise. Honestly, it’s announcement is a bit overdue, considering I’ve been posting very little for…months, now. I always told myself that I’d get back to it, that I’d write another post or “next week” would be my week. Yet that refrain just proved obviously false. There are a few reasons why I think announcing a hiatus now helps (even though I’ve been kinda doing one for half of 2023 💀).

• Lessens the Guilt: we all know I struggle a lot of guilt. I’ve felt a lot of it, surrounding the lack of engagement with this blog (and blog hopping). I miss it, too. Yet I just don’t have the time realistically, right now. Or, perhaps I have the time but I’m choosing to use it for other things. And that’s okay.
• Sets Expectations: My stats for this blog are very, very low. This isn’t surprising, given that I haven’t been posting as consistently and social media isn’t supporting engagement like it once did. So, to be honest, I’m not even sure how many people are actually reading this blog. If anyone is even looking forward to it, when I post. So, whomever that is true for, now you know that it’s going to be sparse for…a hot minute.
• Allows Me to Restructure My Priorities: Right now, between starting the (very slow) recovery from an abusive workplace and burnout; trying to make writing a priority again; and being completely and utterly obsessed with Baldur’s Gate 3; I just can’t fit my blog in. I need less things on my plate. Choosing to make this announcement while out walking with my dog this afternoon was such a breath of relief. I knew I had to.

Why Hiatus “ish”

So, I say it’s a hiatus, but added the “ish” bit to the title. Because I don’t think think this will be a hard and strict hiatus, where I leave this blog entirely for a certain amount of time. I don’t want it to be so rigid that I don’t “allow” my self to post or write something if I feel like it. (I mean, I still need to write my massive BG3 opinions!) If my random, completely unplanned but absolutely necessary for my mental health blog post last week was anything to go by, I just don’t know what it’ll look like.

I’d like to hope that I might post once or twice a month. Even if they are “just” book reviews. But I don’t want to promise anything. My reading has been almost non-existent (blame: Baldur’s Gate 3), so I’m not sure what, if any, that I’ll read and complete in order to even review. And though I have quite a list of posts I want to write, I’m just not sure I have the time, right now.

That said, I do want to continue posting my Allyship series once a month. Plus, it’s my birthday on November 3rd and I am NOT missing my annual birthday post.

So, it’s a hiatus so everyone knows not to expect or hope for my desired two-posts-a-week traditional schedule. But it’s “ish” because who knows what my mood, time or life will allow or want.

What to Expect

In sum, I’d say to expect this hiatus to last practically the rest of the year. I love reflection time, so expect some reflect-y type posts at the end of December, because those will most likely be too much to resist. Likewise, I think I’ll get back on the blogging train in January of next year, because hello intentions setting!

I do not plan on closing up shop or leaving blogging for good. I love it too much still to do that. When I do return in Dec/Jan, I’m not sure if it will be a full return (back to the regularly scheduled programming). Or, if it’ll be tweaked or refined once more, based on where I’m at then. I guess we’ll see!

In the meantime, you can connect with me elsewhere if you’d like to stay in touch:

• Sign up for my Patreon for bi-monthly writing adventures, updates and (perhaps soon?) some big reveals for 2024?
• Find me on most socials (Twitter, BlueSky, Instagram). Fair warning, though: I’m not very active on those, either, atm. More a lurker. 💀

Otherwise, I hope you’re all doing okay. And I really appreciate the understanding. I didn’t fully realize/appreciate how much I was doing and how it was slowly destroying me for so long until mentally, I broke. So, trying to take steps back from commitments (even ones I want, like this blog) feels…I dunno. Partly like a failure, partly like healing, partly like discovering something new about myself, partly like an excuse. Regardless of what it is, I know I need this.

I miss you all and hope to see you again soon. 🖤

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