Please welcome our guest Debra Ullrick

http://debraullrick.com/

WRITER’S BURNOUT

by Debra Ullrick
Recently, I’ve been going through something I didn’t know had a name. It’s called… Writer’s Burnout. How do I know this?
Well, I stumbled across an article that fit me to a Tee and explained exactly what I was going through.
The woman who had written the article had lost three grandparents in a short period of time and a fourth was in the hospital. During this sad time, she had numerous deadlines which she managed to meet even with a broken wrist. But, when she finished the last one, she found no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t write a single word and that was so unlike her. The woman had no idea what was wrong until she discovered she was suffering from Writer’s Burnout. She had no idea what to do. Finally, she mustered up some much needed courage and told her editor and agent what she was going through. Much to her relief, they were very understanding.

What does everything she went through have to do with me?

Well, like her, I had a terrible time writing and had no idea why. Ever since last August something strange has happened inside me. Several mornings, I would wake up thinking… “Oh crud, I woke up.” Not good, and so unlike me. I couldn’t understand why I felt the way I did. All I knew was, stress and depression were taking their physical toll on my body. I soon discovered what the problem was.

This year, a few days before Mother’s Day rolled around, my mother’s death hit me hard. My mom died October 30, 2011. To make matters worse, on Mother’s Day of 2012 my beloved brother-in-law of 44 years passed away. Five months later, my cousin passed away and three months after that my father-in-law died. No wonder I was struggling and depressed. But I didn’t understand or know that until recently.

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You see, I never took the time to grieve for any of them. I was too busy. And lately, I have been missing my mother something awful and wishing I had spent more time with her. I know I can’t go back and change things, but what I can do is learn from her death, and I have. In fact, I learned an invaluable lesson. I might have a deadline, but I can’t neglect those I love because of them. Unfortunately that lesson came too late for me where my mom and brother-in-law are concerned, but it’s not too late for those who are still living.

I’m noticing a change already. I’m allowing myself the time to grieve for those I have lost who were so dear to me. Something I hadn’t done before because I was too busy. I’m not complaining, mind you, as I am very grateful and thankful for every book contract I have received.

I am also stepping back, taking a break, and rejuvenating my creativity again by reading for the pure pleasure of it. I’m also taking time to enjoy the little things of life again, like watching movies, sitting outside in the early mornings listening to the birds and the sounds of summer, and spending time with friends and family who had stopped “bothering” me because I was on a deadline. I now take time and will stop what I am doing to talk with them, to share a meal with them, and to just enjoy their company. Having already started this, I can feel the joy of life and writing rising up in me again. And that’s an awesome, awesome thing. *smiling*

Leave a comment to get your name in the drawing for a copy of The Unintended Groom
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The Unintended Groom
A Perfect PartnershipWhen Abby Bowen's dream of love is dashed, she pursues a new dream: opening a dinner theater in Hot Mineral Springs, Colorado. There's just one hitch: she needs a male business partner. The handsome father of twins who answers Abby's ad is perfect…perhaps too perfect. Working with someone like Harrison Kingsley—without losing her heart—will be harder than Abby anticipated.

It's a good thing Harrison's arrangement with Abby is strictly business. Because with her kind soul, smiling blue eyes and gentle way with his boys, he could easily fall for her. But the longer he works with Abby, the more Harrison realizes that the Lord might have an entirely different partnership planned for them.
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Hi there! I’m Debra Ullrick an award-winning Christian romance author. In addition to multiple full-length novels, my stories have been featured in several novella collections, one of which made the New York Times bestseller’s list. I am happily married to my wonderful, hunky-cowboy husband of thirty-nine years, and I have one married daughter. For over twenty-five years, my husband and I lived and worked on cattle ranches in the Colorado Mountains. A famous movie star and her screenwriter husband are partial owners of the last ranch we lived at. Some of my favorite things are animals, classic cars, mud-bog racing, and monster trucks. When I’m not writing, I’m reading, feeding wild birds, or watching Jane Austen movies, COPS, Bachelor/Bachelorette, or Castle.