A short writing sabbatical.

Thanks to the people who reached out about editing!  It's still really hard for me to do, but I'm having a lot of success letting others help me.

That being said, I'm still extremely stressed and very behind on writing obligations.  I say 'obligations', but there aren't really any obligations, are there?  We don't promise a certain number of chapters or words every week.  I'm just creating arbitrary goalposts for myself, and they are causing me a severe amount of anxiety.  Even opening my laptop makes my head hurt and my stomach turn.  In addition, I'm working on a really huge project with Pudding right now that won't be ready to reveal for a while.  So while I do work a lot, I have very little to "show" for it.

I usually keep a backup story in the wings for times like these, but I don't have one this time.  I've exhausted my backup stories.  When Lanny & Hayden is done - which should be in the next day or two - then I've got nothing else to share for a while.

So I have two options.  We can write, edit, and post new content every few days, like normal writers do.  Or I can take a sabbatical from writing.  More aptly, a sabbatical from posting our writing.  I wish I could be as motivated and consistent as other ABDL writers out there, but I think the sabbatical is better for my mental health.  Pudding and I will still be writing and working on our new projects over the next month, but there won't be any more stories after Lanny & Hayden until June, when I am confident that I can share something worthwhile.

Everything else will continue as normal.  We will still have weekly episodes of The Usual Bet.  We'll be on the Discord, of course.  And we are looking at ways to supplement the lack of stories - specifically, exclusive padcast content.  Maybe I'll even find time to play another game of The Changing Tabletop!  But if you're here just for the writing, feel free to unsubscribe for May and come back in June!  I promise the wait will be worth it. 💜 

*sigh*

I have a lot of self-worth problems and I always feel like I need to "earn" the good things that come my way.  I've let Patreon run my life in the past - with commissions and captions - and I found that putting my personal needs above those promises has helped me feel better.  The difference here is: I really LOVE writing with Pudding.  I really love sharing what we make with our supporters and our friends.  I don't want to stop doing those things.  But maybe I need to stop setting these bars so high.  I don't have to earn all of you, even though I feel like I do.  I know that 95% of you are here for me no matter what I give in return.  Thank you for that. 

Well, that's it.  Expect the end of Lanny & Hayden very soon, and more talk about exclusive Patreon content on tomorrow's episode of The Usual Bet.  Thanks for reading, and thanks for sticking with us through everything.

Your friend, writer, and counter extraordinaire,
~Sophie