I wanted to hype my favourite books of 2019 but instead I wrote this weird post about life
So my "traditional" yearly post in which I discuss my reading adventures and highlight those books that made the biggest impression on me is looooong overdue. No one's to blame but myself, I guess. Given how 2020 is unfolding, I'm having trouble focusing on stuff. I try to do one important thing per day that's my university work related and one thing a day that has to do with my writing career.
By the way, my big writing related "thing" yesterday was this wonderful digital launch of OASIS which was organised by the wonderful humans of Oz Authors Online (check out their digital events schedule and join in).
You can watch the recording of the live event now:
But I diverge:) So, I'm procrastinating writing this "my 2019 year in reading" post... But the truth is, my 2020 has been to a great start actually, and as I think back to the versions of myself which exist in the spacetime continuum of January, February or even early March of this year I look at those Katyas with such envy. Peeps, I celebrated the New Year in New York City! I launched my second book in New York, and then in Los Angeles! I've travelled to my dream country Iceland and it was everything I hoped it would be and more (I mean, I can write an entire post about Iceland and how bloody awesome it is, and one day soon I will).
I count myself lucky that I got to do all that (and more) and safely make it back home to Australia before the whole world went to hell. I struggle to believe how it was only one month ago that I was in Canberra launching OASIS in Paperchain with my friend, bookseller Claire and my marvellous readers. I also can't believe I was in Sydney, hanging out with Annie, Readers' Review, Alicia, Andrew, Katherine, the wonderful booksellers at Galaxy bookshop - and everyone else who came to support me! I ALSO can't believe that it is in the same universe as the one we're all living in right now that I was once upon a time happily emailing the beloved Readings Kids and my favourite baker Jess to organise my Melbourne launch... I still remember crying as I had to write all those emails, making cancellation decisions as COVID-19 crept in into our lives.
It's tough right now. My heart goes out to everyone affected by this terrible crisis. I'm thankful to all the medical personnel and essential workers who are out there, risking their health so that our country can continue to function.
If you're like me and have been working from home for nearly a month now, I hope you've been taking care of yourself, of your health - both physical and mental. I hope you haven't been giving in to panic (I have - on my bad days, I admit). I hope that you haven't been feeling too overwhelmed by this push for "productivity" I've been seeing a lot of lately. I'm finding it difficult to function right now, let alone create, write, do art, even read. It's okay to be tired, sad, anxious and just to feel down about it all. I'm telling this to myself as much as to you. I mean, I cried for "no reason" while standing in my kitchen today as I prepared my modest lunch of instant noodles because I just don't have the energy to cook anything healthy or complicated right now and because I only go to shop once a week now and don't buy as much of fresh produce as I'm used to and because I now have to cook three times a day when I can barely make myself get out of the bed in the morning. It's okay to cry for no reason. It's okay to be upset and annoyed. It's okay to be.
Peace,
K
By the way, my big writing related "thing" yesterday was this wonderful digital launch of OASIS which was organised by the wonderful humans of Oz Authors Online (check out their digital events schedule and join in).
You can watch the recording of the live event now:
But I diverge:) So, I'm procrastinating writing this "my 2019 year in reading" post... But the truth is, my 2020 has been to a great start actually, and as I think back to the versions of myself which exist in the spacetime continuum of January, February or even early March of this year I look at those Katyas with such envy. Peeps, I celebrated the New Year in New York City! I launched my second book in New York, and then in Los Angeles! I've travelled to my dream country Iceland and it was everything I hoped it would be and more (I mean, I can write an entire post about Iceland and how bloody awesome it is, and one day soon I will).
 |
| OASIS cupcakes from my LA launch |
I count myself lucky that I got to do all that (and more) and safely make it back home to Australia before the whole world went to hell. I struggle to believe how it was only one month ago that I was in Canberra launching OASIS in Paperchain with my friend, bookseller Claire and my marvellous readers. I also can't believe I was in Sydney, hanging out with Annie, Readers' Review, Alicia, Andrew, Katherine, the wonderful booksellers at Galaxy bookshop - and everyone else who came to support me! I ALSO can't believe that it is in the same universe as the one we're all living in right now that I was once upon a time happily emailing the beloved Readings Kids and my favourite baker Jess to organise my Melbourne launch... I still remember crying as I had to write all those emails, making cancellation decisions as COVID-19 crept in into our lives.
It's tough right now. My heart goes out to everyone affected by this terrible crisis. I'm thankful to all the medical personnel and essential workers who are out there, risking their health so that our country can continue to function.
If you're like me and have been working from home for nearly a month now, I hope you've been taking care of yourself, of your health - both physical and mental. I hope you haven't been giving in to panic (I have - on my bad days, I admit). I hope that you haven't been feeling too overwhelmed by this push for "productivity" I've been seeing a lot of lately. I'm finding it difficult to function right now, let alone create, write, do art, even read. It's okay to be tired, sad, anxious and just to feel down about it all. I'm telling this to myself as much as to you. I mean, I cried for "no reason" while standing in my kitchen today as I prepared my modest lunch of instant noodles because I just don't have the energy to cook anything healthy or complicated right now and because I only go to shop once a week now and don't buy as much of fresh produce as I'm used to and because I now have to cook three times a day when I can barely make myself get out of the bed in the morning. It's okay to cry for no reason. It's okay to be upset and annoyed. It's okay to be.
Peace,
K
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