Hey, there! It's been a minute . . .
Catching up with life lately
Hello to all my old and new subscribers! It’s been a while . . . So, I thought I’d start with an update on where I’ve been.
Life Lately
This past May (2024), my father’s dementia, which had been slowly progressing for years, rapidly declined. We thought he’d been having mini strokes and moved him into assisted living. He continued to decline to the point where he was experiencing aphasia, particularly with speaking nonsense and not understanding anything anyone said to him.
After the nurse practitioner at his facility thought she’d witnessed a stroke, she sent him to the hospital, and we discovered that cancer — and a corresponding rise in blood calcium levels — was the cause of what we thought was the sudden rapid decline in his dementia.
He’s currently beating the cancer, but although his mental state has recovered significantly, he still has dementia (for which there’s no cure). So I became his primary caretaker, in charge of everything from managing his finances to scheduling his doctor’s appointments, running errands, and communicating with his care staff.
Thus, I became a card-carrying member of the sandwich generation. Along with being mom to a 9-year-old with ADHD, it’s a lot. The sheer number of doctor's appointments between the three of us (which includes me with my type 2 diabetes) is a lot.
On the somewhat bright side, I went through a months-long depressive episode (yes, there’s a bright side here) that helped me figure out where I really want to focus my time. I wrote about that for BezzyDepression, a community-focused offshoot of Healthline.
Long story short, I’m setting aside nonfiction writing for now and focusing exclusively on my fiction writing — because that’s what feels fun to me, and, like so many of us, I need some fun right now.
I may return to writing nonfiction eventually. I always feel like I have plenty to say, and that’s what drew me to it in the first place. But I’m not sure at the moment what the future holds for me there.
Which brings us to the newsletter’s makeover . . .
The New Look
Because I often refer to the scene and character notes in my notebooks as “sketches,” the name “Sketch Pad” originally made sense to me for my author newsletter. But — it didn’t make much sense to others because it made me sound like a visual artist rather than a writer. And while I greatly respect visual artists, sadly, I have no talent in that area.
So I tested a bunch of other name ideas. I loved “Beyond the Page,” but many Substack writers already use that one. I also liked “Between the Lines,” but I had the same issue again. So, I ultimately chose “Writing Outside the Lines” for its uniqueness.
But I also love what it implies: That you’ll get more from me than just writing tips and insights from my experiences as an author. You’ll also get all kinds of things “outside the lines” — from behind-the-scenes looks at the inspiration for my books to peeks into life in general.
What to Expect
Between being in the squashed middle of a generational sandwich to approaching the end of my semester and being neck-deep in book launch mode (see below), I’m not sure what I’m currently capable of.
So I’ll make no promises, since life often interferes in ways that make those impossible to fulfill. But for now, I intend to post about once a month.
In Other News . . .
Parker (my son) and I have a children’s picture book releasing on May 1st! Inspired by the campy fun of a B sci-fi movie, Attack of the Monster Pickles! is the story of a boy afraid to go to sleep because of the scary sounds he hears in the dark. That is, until he meets Orion Sinclair, Monster Hunter, who teaches him how to overcome the cause of all those creepy noises — the invasion of monster pickles mounting in his kitchen!
Available for pre-order today, April 24th! Discover more on my website: sarahelizabethgraves.com.
