Man, I’m sorry to hear about that happening to your family. But it’s good to hear you’re getting in ‘bounce back’ mode.
I didn’t write anything between September (when CCH was submitted) until like March, so I basically took a six month break. I told myself that I was waiting to gauge audience reaction/demand for a sequel before starting on it, but in reality I was just super lazy this winter.
Things that have helped me get back into the grove:
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Joining a local writers’ group. There’s no substitute for getting your work reviewed by other writers in your area
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doing short “writing sprints.” Just write non-stop for 2-5 minutes and see what you have when it’s over. I’ll bet you find some neat ideas, even if they require lots of tweaking.
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set weekly goals. Just a post-it note by the computer will do. I’m aiming for 7500 words per week at this point.
I hope that helps, and yes I agree that @Fiogan is full of it! Full of valuable insight I mean