Author · History · Writing

Life Happens…. & Sometimes The Writing Just Stops

evelinawood

It’s crazy to think that it’s been a whole year since I last created a blog post; sometimes the best laid plans go awry because Life just has a different idea for what we should be learning and doing in that time. One thing I’ve learned over the last few years is to just go with it; divine timing always has a way of working things out.

I didn’t work on Ophelia & Asher’s story at all in 2022. I did open the draft, peer at it, and try to reconnect with it a few times here and there, but I just had no creative desire to do anything more with it. It was a highly stressful year at work, and my brain was buzzing with a myriad of other priorities and responsibilities. Instead of working on my WIP (Work In Process), I spent my free time just reading a ton of new romance books and going on adventures instead.

The break I took from writing was actually a boon to my creativity. In 2022, I wrote more prose to sort through my thoughts. I dived deep into my self to relook at my goals and expectations. I visited a few historic sites. And then, unexpectedly in the Fall, pure kismet led me to the Calvert Vaux Preservation Alliance and I became their Board Treasurer. Stay tuned for a future blog post on that awesome turn of events and all that it entails!

If 2022 was a year of reflection and review, then I am putting it out into the Universe that 2023 is going to be a year of planning and executing. The first thing on my to-do list is getting back to the research and immersing myself into history again. I picked up quite a few books over the last year (subconsciously, I think) and they have been sitting on my TBR (To Be Read) list. They range from Gilded Age society to Victorian/Edwardian fashion to servant life and even veering into Hudson Valley’s history of the macabre and curious. You can blame the latter two subjects on my deep dive into the Dark Academia romance genre…. What can I say? Inspiration comes from all sorts of places when you’re a writer.

And if you’re curious, here’s a peek at the highlights of my book haul below:

I am so excited to get back into the world that I love so much, refreshed, prepared, and ready to go. It is absolutely time to get back to mixing history, romance & fiction!

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Published by evelinawood

I was lucky to have been born in the Hudson Valley, NY. My heart lies buried deep in my roots: the tract of immense acreage from New York City to the Adirondacks that is a treasure trove of American History beginning with the Native Indian tribes of the Algonquin and Iroquois to colonization, the Revolutionary War, to the Industrial Age and right up through to modern times. It is an area that has experienced profound change, yet still retains its majestic beauty. I fell in love with Hudson Valley history at a young age. My hometown alone has three historic sites: the homes of Franklin D Roosevelt, the Vanderbilts and the Livingston Mills. As a young girl I imagined myself as a part of these homes and I was lucky to have teachers who flamed my passions for local history; they created an insatiable curiosity that has followed me throughout my life; inspiring me to learn more about all of the people who came before me. My favorite time period is the Edwardian Era: the time of robber barons, railroad magnates and gilded lifestyles, encompassing the end of the Victorian Era until the First World War. Those who had money flaunted it profusely, and those who didn't suffered in unimaginable ways. The Hudson Valley experienced the contrast directly with the immense mansions built along the shores of the Hudson River to the immigrants arriving in New York City to make a new life in the United States. My blog will provide glimpses of life in the Hudson Valley during this time by drawing on the historical research I am always working with and through the snippets of stories I am writing. I hope that my blog brings you enjoyment and a new perspective on a beautiful area so important to American History. Happy reading and thank you for taking the time to visit me!

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