At some point in your journey, you’re probably going to need to take a break from writing. You might even want to take a break from it.

And virtually everyone I know who takes a step back from writing feels a whole lot of guilt.

There’s an immense sunk cost to building a writing career, no matter how robust or fledgling. It’s one of the most mentally challenging endeavors you can undertake. You must endure any number of rejections, big and small. You probably needed to adjust real life relationships and say no to things in order to chase your dream.

It’s a psychologically risky business. And when you pause to pursue something else, the questions mount.

What was all the sacrifice for if I’m just going to give it up? If this is what I long believed I was meant to be doing, why am I not doing it? Am I really going to stop this far short of my ultimate dreams?

Let me try to assuage those questions. This happens. Do what you need to do. Writing will be there when you need it.