Thread by @manylittlewords, How I protect my mental health as a writer (a wee thread): [...]

How I protect my mental health as a writer (a wee thread):

I celebrate other writer& #39;s successes. Genuuinely. I love to see people winning. If you succeed, if you& #39;re doing the thing, then I& #39;m happy. Writing isn& #39;t a competition, we& #39;re all on it together.

I don& #39;t compare myself to other writers. It& #39;s a waste of time. I& #39;m me, that& #39;s enough, I& #39;ll just keep on plugging away. If it happens it happens, if not, it& #39;s not my place to compare myself to anyone else. This makes life much much simpler.

That isn& #39;t to say I don& #39;t occasionally get jealous or demoralised. Of course I do. It& #39;s a natural part of being a creative: wanting success for ourselves as well as our peers. But it& #39;s also a colossal waste of energy. So I accept that I& #39;ve been a green- eyed beast, and move on.

I don& #39;t make myself available all the time. This is so important for me, as it gives me control over my own day. I don& #39;t engage with messages or emails until I& #39;m ready.

I have routine. I go spare without routine. I know this is the worst possible time to have any sort of organised day, but I do the best I can and make a pact with myself to write every day, even if its only 10 words. It& #39;s all winning stuff.

I go for a LOT of walks. Again, I know this isn& #39;t easy for everyone, but removing myself from work and screens on a regular basis is the only way I fight off the burn.

Beta readers. I cannot express enough how beta readers cheer me up when I& #39;m stuck in a mood slump. If I& #39;m having doubts about a book or story, I& #39;ll reach out, and the beta reader feedback I get honestly gives me life. Special mention to @AidenMerchant89 and @Ross1982 for helping.

Same goes for editors. Editors aren& #39;t just champions of the written word, a really good one is an absolute joy to work with and the whole experience is so delightful and inspiring that it never fails to cheer me up. Looking at YOU @dan_hanks

I don& #39;t read reviews that often anymore. This had restored my anxiety levels to manageable quantities.

I also have stopped searching for myself on a certain reddit forum because they hate me and I& #39;m cool with that

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="😂" title="Face with tears of joy" aria-label="Emoji: Face with tears of joy">

Not sure how helpful this is to anyone, but I& #39;m always open and honest about how much of a fuckwit my brain is, and I see people I love on here struggling sometimes. I know those struggles. If I can help at all in any way, shape or form, even a silly tweet thread, its something.

I try not to get involved too much with drama on here. We& #39;re a tight-knit community, things blow up from time to time. However, social media is rife for misinterpretation. I don& #39;t feel too comfortable engaging with whatever outrage is trending at the time, in case I fuck up.

In that sense, I just tend to sit back a little and absorb without adding. Which sounds cowardly, doesn& #39;t it? If it were a matter of principle, or abuse, or a very clear cut mistreatment of a peer, I would stand up and say something. But otherwise, it is too easy to get embroiled

Again, controlling how I interact with people is key. I don& #39;t feel obligated to engage on anyone else& #39;s terms but my own. This is the only surefire way to protect my buggery wee brain, and it works, so I& #39;ll keep doing it.

I try to read as much as possible.

HOWEVER, although book twitter and bookstagram are glorious places, it can make you feel very guilty for not buying and reading your friend& #39;s books. Because I want to, so very much, but it isn& #39;t always possible. I have to prioritise, for my job

I DO however always try my best to share and promote and discuss and encourage and boost my fellow wordies wherever possible, because, it makes me happy. It& #39;s like a positive feedback loop and I& #39;m okay with that.

I am becoming less and less enamored of snark and curmudgeon. Who has time for that? Yes it& #39;s funny and endearing but it can also be exhausting. The world is a towering pile of steaming hedgehog poo at the moment, I just want to laugh and feel like I& #39;m making my way forward.

I consume A LOT of very bad memes and jokes. They cheer me up no bloody end. A good old stock photo meme search is just the ticket when my mood is slumping mid-mood.

Like this, because I am SUPER high brow

I try not to beat myself up over terrible sentences like & #39;my mood is slumping mid-mood& #39;

I also try not to get ahead of myself. I think this is the single biggest thing in not getting overwhelmed as a creative. I& #39;m not living for the best-seller books lists, awards, money (although it would be nice lolllzzz) or recognition. That stuff drives you mad. I just write.

I& #39;m also not tied up in what others think about me when I& #39;m doing my thing on social. Hubris? Humility? Ego? Rambling on? Boring? Yeah, it can be tough to find a balance. But I just keep throwing stuff at the wall to see what sticks. If it means I sell more books, hurrah!

I& #39;ve also realised that as an indie/ self-pubber, you need social, you can& #39;t take it for granted, and it& #39;s okay to invest time and energy in it because its essentially free advertising and we all bloody need it. So I accept it for what it is. It& #39;s a platform and a tool, primarily

That being said, I still don& #39;t know what I& #39;m doing most of the time. My only viral tweet thus far has been about the word & #39;fanny,& #39; so what that tells you about twitter I don& #39;t know *shrugs*

Latest Threads Unrolled: