Reader’s will recognize this post’s title as a line from “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” more commonly known as “Twas the Night Before Christmas”:

And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap

The Lord has been talking to me about resting, and part of that will involve the longest break from blogging I’ve taken since The Voice of One began 10 years ago. (Yes, that’s right 10 YEARS!). I will be taking a long winter’s nap through the whole holiday season (about a month). At this point, I plan to return to blogging in January, but I will be asking the Lord more specifically about a return date.

Part of the reason for this break is that I’ve been feeling some writer’s fatigue. In 2020, the Lord moved me to be more intentional about writing and reading poetry. Since then, I self-published two books of poetry: The Wind and the Shadows (2020), and Event Horizon (2022). In 2021, I also launched a poetry blog, A Wandering Minstrel, and started submitting poems to journals. I hope to self-publish a chapbook called The State of Mercury by the end of the year, and am putting together a third book of poetry, which I hope to self-publish next year. So between all of this and The Voice of One, (not to mention a half dozen or so newspaper columns) I have done A TON of writing the last couple years.

Don’t get me wrong, all of this writing has caused me to grow a lot as a writer. But I also see my energy and inspiration sagging and recognize it’s time to recharge. That said, I would welcome comments below from other writers about how you recharge when you feel writer’s fatigue.

I will still check on my blog so I can respond to comments, prayer requests, or questions throughout my break. Please do continue to visit. This is a good time to read old posts, booklets I have posted, and also to check out some of the wonderful blogs I follow. My hope is that some good “brain settling” will happen during this long winter’s nap, and that I will come back to blogging with more vitality. Until then, the Lord bless you!