Leaving Substack for the Summer
Because writing fiction requires mental space, and I've always been a fairy (IYKYK)
A House (Mind) Full of Things
Writing is a bit like keeping a house clean.
A house can be a wonderful thing. It gives you shelter, comfort, and a place to safely keep the things you love. But the more rooms you add, the more furniture you buy, and the more belongings you accumulate, the more time you must spend cleaning, organizing, repairing, and maintaining everything. Eventually, you may find yourself spending so much time taking care of the house that you barely have time left to actually live in it.
Writing projects work pretty much the same way.
Every platform, every publication, every account, and every ongoing project requires attention. None of them are particularly difficult on their own, but together they occupy spaceβmental space, creative space, and time. And lately, I have realized that I need more of those things available for fiction.
One of the strange things about fiction is that writing itself is only part of the process. Stories spend a lot of time existing in your head before they ever reach the page. They grow while youβre doing dishes. They grow while youβre walking. They grow while youβre trying to sleep and your characters decide that two in the morning is the perfect time to discuss their emotional problems.
Writing fiction requires a different kind of attention than writing articles. It requires room to think, room to imagine, and room to let ideas develop naturally.
As some of you may already know, I also happen to be a rather slow writer. That isnβt necessarily a bad thing. I like taking my time with stories. But it does mean that when deadlines start approaching, I need to be intentional about where my energy goes. Right now, it needs to go toward fiction.
Also, while fiction is important, there are other things in life that require my attention. I donβt need to go into great detail; suffice it to say that Iβll be using the summer to focus on some of my goals for this year. We shall see in the fall which of those goals end up taking most of my time.
In a completely unnecessary update note, it turns out I may or may not run into legal complications regarding the future publication of my books. Nothing serious if the necessary precautions are taken, but precisely for that reason, I need to take a couple of steps back from Substack and focus on finishing as many books as possible before the end of 2027.
Why? Well, Iβve been doing some research, and one of the things I learned is that, with a student visa in the USA, you canβt have a full-time job or your own business (whether online or in person), and you still have to go through several verification processes to obtain permission for part-time work.
Self-publishing, producing, and even marketing can count as running a business because they require time and the management of data, finances, and important decisions. HOWEVER, if that entire system is already in place and runs automatically, there shouldnβt be any problem. Therefore, I need to finish scheduling content, writing, and publishing the projects I have planned, including the five books of my Rainbow saga, two standalone novels, and a short story anthology.
As I mentioned before, writing is only one part of the process. At this point, Iβd say itβs the least of my problems, even if writerβs block decides to get in my way again. So you can probably imagine how much mental space all those other processesβinformation gathering, organization, planning, and decision-makingβtake up.
Which is driving me a little crazy.
Yes, more than usual.
Scarlet Ink Fiction
On the other hand, if you see me βpostingβ something before September 3rd, itβs not because Iβm back. I simply scheduled some things. These include an introductory article to the Rainbow saga and the prologues for each book in it. All of this will be released through my exclusive fiction Substack, which, if you donβt already know what it is, Iβll leave it right here below.
Lemme pray for you!
Last but not least, Iβd still like to stay connected with you all in some way. Thatβs why Iβd like to keep you in my prayers. I already do this in general1, but if thereβs anything specific youβd like me to pray for, feel free to leave it in the comments. Or if you prefer, my DMs are always open for you ;)
So, long story short, Iβm leaving because there are stories waiting to be written, and some stories have deadlines too. So, for now, Iβll be trading essays for fiction, articles for chapters, and weekly publishing schedules for long hours staring at blank pages.
Thank you for reading, for supporting my writing, and for spending part of your time here with me.
That being said, I wish you a lovely summer and see you in a few months.
Dietro le lettere,
Yazz, without your permission muwahaha