When I was younger and thinking about my path to a creative life, I used to worry about being stuck at home.  If I was working on novels and desk work all day, I reasoned, I’d be tied to my desk at home, which meant I’d be cooped up never seeing anyone.  That sounded pretty lonely.  And depressing.

Part of this fear, I think, stemmed from a rough patch I went through after college where I wasn’t working regularly. During that year I spent a lot of time at home, sleeping late, taking care of my mother’s hyper-energetic dogs, and in general not doing much of anything because I didn’t have a work routine or good work habits yet.

After I entered the Day Job world, though, I realized that Day Jobs provided a way to get out of my house, accomplish set goals, and in general provide structure to my life.

I stayed in this mindset for a long time, easing out of it only when I had my first work-from-home job, and later in Japan during COVID-19 restrictions, when I also spent a lot of time at home.

Now that I structure my own writing and editing life, though, I have almost the opposite problem: I’m so comfortable with my at-home working routine that I get sucked into it, doing so much at my desk and around the apartment that before I know it Continue reading »