Hey, SE Readers. Joan here today. Many of us face times when we need a break from writing. Whether you balance a full-time job with writing or write for a living, we all need to step aside for a while.

I’d like to note that D. L. Finn wrote an excellent post earlier this year on mini vacations for writers. Click here to read.

The year 2022 has been one of transition for me. I’ve gone from being employed full-time with writing in the evenings and on weekends to becoming a full-time writer. Before I retired at the end of August, as much as I hated to do it, I needed to step aside from writing for a while.

Doing so meant postponing the release of a planned short story collection, but sometimes we put too much pressure on ourselves, and I found I was doing that. The break was…