WRITERS’ VOICE
The smallest steps
Crime writer and SoA board member Sam Blake on slowing down to stay focused in uncertain times
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Anxiety is bad for creativity. Even if you don’t feel consciously anxious, there’s no escaping the uncertainty and rapid change we’re dealing with right now. No matter how positive and grounded you might feel, it takes its toll. But while it is a problem, it needn’t be an impossible one.
As writers, we can’t afford to just stop being creative. Personally, I get grumpy if I don’t find time to write, even if 50% of that time is procrastination. Until March 2020, before lockdown, I was travelling almost weekly to promote my book Keep Your Eyes on Me, while at the same time editing my new one, The Dark Room, published last month. Life was wonderfully hectic. I programmed events for many festivals, ran the Writing.ie website and was Chair of Irish PEN. I thrive on change. But suddenly unable to leave the house, the structure was gone from my life, and with it my ability to concentrate.