Hello 26, Let’s Do This.

After my little blogging hiatus, my birthday is next week, and I’ve officially hit that age (basically any age after 21, am I right) where every birthday is less fun and usually comes with a dose of existential dread.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my life and all the amazing experiences I’ve had that brought me here.

But there are moments where I’m like “woah, I’m closer to 30 than I am to 18” and that’s seriously terrifying. In many ways, I’m happy with where I’m at. And in other ways, I feel like I’m way behind. That might just be the way things are, perhaps a bigger commentary on the human condition as a whole. Whatever it is, I feel it big-time whenever another birthday rolls around.

But this year, instead of feeling sad, I plan to fully emerge myself in all the blessings I’ve experienced recently. Having an attitude of gratitude is the way to go, right?

Right. Okay cool.

That’s why I decided to spend my birthday blog post this year with thankfulness. Thankful for the blessings I’ve been given and all the blessings yet to come.

There are too many to post, but alas, here are my top 5:

#1: New publishing opportunity

A recent book I read to help me develop my story!

This one I can’t talk about a whole lot yet, but it’s going to be the secret sauce that makes Breakup Queen the epic saga that I know it will be. If you’re newer to my blog, you might not know that I’ve been publishing books since I was in college (and my debut novel was published when I was 19). So this is going to be an amazing milestone for me and my creative work, and it’s going to happen this year when I’m 26.

#2: More freelancing work

I also am self-employed, and recently I’ve gotten more gigs that are getting me closer and closer to hitting my personal financial goals — and that’s a really exciting thing. If you also graduated from college semi-recently like me (class of 2019, what’s up), then you probably know the job struggle all too well. But things are looking up, and networking like crazy actually paid off. I’m so happy with where things are at and all signs point to more work and opportunities on the way. My professional life is blooming, and I’m so grateful for it because I know it was a steep climb to get here, and there’s still so much more I want to do.

#3: Boyfriend ❤️

Aren’t we so cute? I adore him so much.

This one appeared out of nowhere (jk, we met online but it still felt super sudden). But Andrew, is very possibly, the best thing that ever happened to me. He’s the most kind-hearted, mature, and sweet family-oriented guy I’ve ever met, and can’t wait to see what’s in the future for us. Oh, and did I mention he’s in the national guard? It’s impressive, for sure. I wouldn’t be brave enough for something like that, but I’m so grateful God makes people who are ❤️

#4: Friends both near and far

While I sadly don’t have many local friends, I am so grateful for the friends I do have that are only a text or call away. I know it takes a village, and I count myself so blessed to have people all over the country that care about me. Even one or two in other countries, isn’t that wild? Distance is no problem with technology, and I’m so glad to have met these kind souls any way I could.

#5: Never Growing Up

Back when I had pink hair, pictured with one of my crocheted unicorns and very apropos Yarn Punk leggings.

I’ve been so surprised at the value and joy I get out of re-connecting with my inner child. Sticker books have been one way I love relaxing when I’m stressed, or watching shows that take me back to a simpler time (Gilmore Girls, I’m lookin at you). And I think anytime a birthday rolls around, it’s so important to connect with the younger version(s) of you too. Before you were twenty-something, you were 18. And 16. And 12. And so on, and so forth. A birthday is a wonderful time to give yourself a hug from every era, in preparation for your next eras and adventures to come.

Anyone else with a birthday in March? Let me know, we can share ideas and celebrate!

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The Benefits of NOT Writing

Yes, seriously. No, I’m not losing my mind.

I’m just saying that although if you’re reading this blog, writing is your bread and butter (like it is for me), but there’s more to you than just that. I’m also saying that unfortunately, try as we might, writing just doesn’t happen outside of work. That’s been the case for me for the past six months, I think. Or maybe it’s even been more.

No matter how long it’s been since the words were really flowing without having to try, I went through a bit of writer’s guilt. Then not far behind that comes the imposter syndrome, and that can be really hard to claw your way out of.

Instead of penalizing myself for not feeling motivated with my latest concept, I’m trying to refocus on this season, knowing that the inspiration will come back. What I blame for this seemingly endless dry spell are the following (which, aren’t bad things by any means, they just may be to blame for my lack of creative motivation):

My table at the Scituate Farmer’s Market in RI recently!

• Having a boyfriend (don’t get me wrong, I love him SO MUCH – but it’s like now that I’m finally happy in that area of my life, suddenly I’m lacking the need to escape from monotony by writing a story). I call this the “Taylor Swift syndrome” (you know, when she openly started dating Joe Alwyn and suddenly fans worried all the angst would be gone from her songs, leaving us with nothing but sugary-sweet garbage). I don’t want to lose my angst either!
• My freelance gigs (as much as I am so grateful to be able to pay off my car as fast as I have been, there’s something really tricky about saving any creative juices for my own work after writing about pest control and personal care products all day).
• My other interests (in this case, my crocheted art that I make by hand for my vendor shows, as well as my independent guitar studies that have also sadly, fallen quite a bit to the wayside). After I get through all of those things, I feel too tired to sit and craft the story that’s been bumping around in my head for like a year now.

These aren’t meant to be viewed as excuses, but rather a self-awareness tactic to diagnose the issue, and then bring some much-needed balance back to my life. What I would suggest if you find yourself in a similar boat, would be to sit down and make a list of all the things you’re juggling in your life (professional, and otherwise). From there, try and compartmentalize / prioritize the things that you most want to tackle first, and what you feel okay with waiting on for a little while.

And in return, you’ll gain…

• A renewed sense of self

• A fresh start

• Better quality writing

• More motivation (ironically, but it’s true!)

And if you have the opportunity to enjoy a different facet of your interests for a while besides writing, don’t feel badly about it. Instead, soak up the rest of this summer with all the amazing things that make you unique!

Keep in touch with my latest book signings and art shows via my events page!

Life Moves Fast… Blink, and You’ll Miss It

I always struggle to think up new things to blog about. My life rarely feels all that exciting. Except for when it does. Then, it’s like a deluge of things and my head spins with all the added changes and adjustments. But that isn’t usually a bad thing – no, quite the opposite actually!

In previous seasons of stagnant progress, I often wondered when (or even if) things would ever change for me. And oh boy, did they change. When I graduated from college wondering what I would do for work, I had to network and work hard for over two years until I started getting real paid gigs. But when I recently bought my first-ever brand new car, I had this moment of “holy crap, I’m actually getting somewhere in life now”. You can read more about that experience in this recent blog post.

But to share with you what I mean, I’ll break it down into three categories:

1. I got a boyfriend.

I know, I was shocked too (JK, it was bound to happen eventually because I’m freaking adorable, obviously). But the WAY in which this one happened was so incredibly wild, I’m still processing it even over a month later.

I originally met Adam TEN YEARS AGO in band camp. I was the guitarist, he was the drummer randomly assigned to the same group. We didn’t talk much, but we definitely hung back while the louder, more confident kids led the conversations. Pretty typical for awkward teenagers (and boy were we awkward). In the decade that followed, we mostly lost contact until he hit me up on Instagram a couple years ago and we started chatting again. Then, this past December, Adam was like “hey, I haven’t seen you in forever, want to catch up sometime?” And so I was like, “Sure, why not?” I can always use more friends. I was partially right about that, it just escalated in a way I definitely didn’t expect. It turns out, we have all the same values and energy. It honestly blew my mind how crazy we connected, and just the sheer depth of our conversations. So I recently asked him, “Are you glad I let you out of the friend zone?” And Adam didn’t skip a beat, he just said “I never really saw it that way.” Enough said, we’re adorable and stuff. I definitely chased guitarists too long when I guess it was always meant to be a drummer 😉

2. I’m starting my guitar teaching journey.

Yesterday was a typical Wednesday for me, except for the fact my guitar teacher dropped the news that he was leaving the store to teach elsewhere. So that’s when I finally decided to take the plunge and go for it – it was time for me to finally start the process of applying to teach. He was already helping me with this process on the practical level, but now is the time I decided to push myself out of my comfort zone and actually go for it after years of toying with the idea. I’m equal parts terrified and excited, but I know that it will be so fulfilling for me, AND will bring some much-needed structure to my weekly routines.

3. My writing gigs are picking up.

I finally am seeing real progress in my professional work. I have clients that come back to me again and again, as well as a couple larger gigs that bring consistent assignments to me. These are HUGE blessings, and the only drawback I can see is that they’re keeping me from writing my next book because I’m often creatively spent by the time I get to it. But that’s okay – I know the creative process takes time, and that as long as I don’t give up, it’ll all happen the way it’s meant to (as seen in the above points 1-2). Of course, there’s still a long way to go, but there’s something really surreal about seeing your life finally start taking shape the way you’ve always wanted it to.

Where has your life been taking you recently? Share in the comments and let me know how you’ve been. And if you’re ever in the market for creative content writing or editorial work, please drop me a line via my freelance website HERE: https://www.angelinasinger.com/freelance