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Text of the page (random words):
s for the next few years that is also a way to cope it is not one i choose because i prefer to face what is going on but people have different tolerances and what i want most for people is that they survive how do i want to use social media many people don t use social media at all and more power to them in my case i use social media to connect occasionally to let off steam i need that outlet too but i don t need to doom scroll my way into giving up nor do i need to fan the flames of impotent outrage others can do that i m not interested limits may include scheduling the amount of time i allow myself to be on social media timing goals include things like posting in the mornings only if i have specific publishing related news and scrolling reading only after i have completed work for the day will i stick to that no of course not but if i manage a shift of habit more often than not then i am ahead of the game crucially i will focus on not letting the outrage despair cycle eat up my creative energy that is better used for working curation goals may mean muting or blocking people both online and in real life who bring too much negativity doomerism or inter coalition factionalism to their online vibe as ben franklin said if we don t hang together we will assuredly hang separately that includes not obsessively reading the comments of vile people who cheer on cruelty no need to wash my eyes in those toxins block and move on i think it is worthwhile to think ahead of time about what may work best as a coping and curating strategy and to stay open to adapting it as things change this is what novelists mean by agency i can t stop the latest appalling executive order or law or court order but i can control whether i let despair and rage obliterate my ability to live day to day and whether i focus on what i can do and the things i do have which are real and important i will use my energy for what i can accomplish to conclude i remind myself that when people declare they are acting in order to harm others to create suffering to make people cry and especially when they make such declarations with a sense of pride strutting bullying glee that they are speaking of their intention to act evilly what we are dealing with is not political disagreement but intent to cause suffering framing the situation in that way matters throughout history people have struggled through terrible ordeals many do not survive but each of us is here today because some of our ancestors survived those times i honor the struggle and persistence of those who came before by choosing to move forward with determination now care self care and care for others is critical when we are under stress any individual has to make sure they are functioning at a basic level and once we feel secure enough we can reach out to people who need help and support i don t know how to stay this strongly enough take care of yourself in whatever ways work best for you and which you can manage there is no correct answer on to how to do this no one true path each person has to figure this out for themselves and their strategies may change over time my self care falls into two modes how to bleed off anger anxiety and despair and how to build positivity gratitude yes that buzz word and joy it isn t stupid to be grateful and it isn t callous to seek joy in moments or hours or days or weeks or years of our finite lives almost all people wish for joy for themselves and others we don t help people who are suffering by being miserable ourselves and specifically not when our misery doesn t do a single thing to alter their suffering i would go so far as to say misery and outrage are a bit selfish on the part of a person who is not suffering somehow acting as if their public performance of these emotions is more meaningful than actual action being taken to alleviate or expose suffering harm and death this doesn t mean pretending nothing bad is happening but rather letting others not dictate my response lifting up takes strength and thus lifting ourselves and others is part of our task to bleed off stress and fear i use strategies like the five minute a day worry rule in which a worrier like me assigns a specific time in which i am allowed to worry i can worry for five minutes at 5 pm to that end as we enter what is bound to be yet another appalling period in usa history because to be clear many appalling things have happened in usa history i have dictated into my phone an extensive list of many of the things i can imagine happening in the next two years ranging from the small insults to the crimes against humanity scenarios after talking non stop for twenty five minutes i sent the long rambling and likely incoherent file to myself i haven t re read it in truth just doing it gave me a weird sense of peace i laid out my anxieties i spoke them aloud my hope is that this worry email will help redirect my anxiety oh i already worried about that let my rambling words bleed my fears and let the universe take them so that there comes less harm less suffering more peace and more justice and mercy for all creatures on earth to build stamina and determination i will continue my usual exercise reading a lot more reading watching fave shows eating ice cream baking yoga massage as i can afford it appreciating a beautiful view of the ocean the trees on my walk and stars in the sky at night as for my work i am building in leeway in terms of my writing goals didn t manage 2000 words today then 1000 is good all things considered couldn t get to 1000 okay how about 500 really struggling then 100 words bad or good is a win be kind to yourself prep to be kind to yourself think about it in advance plan for kindness write it onto your mental slate cut yourself and those around you the slack you need to keep moving forward it is just as important to prioritize care for others especially at a time when many people may have additional needs and increased stressors reach out to family and friends and colleagues and to strangers if one can to see what people need i will talk more about this below care is a two way street or perhaps better to say it is a multi lane intersection we can be both the helpers and the helped sometimes the most positive and strengthening form of self care is to care for and aid others community cooperation shared work altruism these are all things that literally make people feel more positive about themselves their communities and the world connect as an introvert i have a bit of a hermit tendency and that s okay solitude helps me recharge at the same time for many people i venture to say most people connections with others make us healthier i mean that literally for example older people who care for pets and older people who have more weekly contact with others rather than live isolated in a small apartment for example show better health age outcomes we are band animals by that i don t mean that everyone must want to be around people all the time i don t want to be but insofar as you can i hope we all have people we want to see talk to hang out with in person or via zoom play an online or tabletop rpg with or go for a hike or golfing with watch a tv show sit on the porch laugh over the phone cook and eat a meal go shopping together and so on particularly in a time of crisis as we are in now isolation kills we need each other i will find ways to connect i will remind myself that it is good for me to go to dinner with friends instead of writing two more pages on some random project i will use social media like bluesky to connect with people build networks of support and encouragement which we are going to need i can also connect with organizations doing crucial work to support human rights civil rights and environmental rights as i find organizations that fit with what i have to offer during the pandemic i ran several seasons of a zoom writer discussion series under the auspices of sfwa called narrative worlds narrative worlds ran for four seasons with great guest writers and i loved doing it shoutout to sfwa tech support nathan lucas and c j lavigne and i m glad i did it which is why i am mentioning it here degraded search engines aside libraries and online resources hold a wealth of fascinating information that many people can now access and share we can share with each other there s no telling how even the smallest or larger point of connection will make a difference for someone else or for you we can t predict the ripples from any tossed stone however trivial it may seem to the onlooker if i can t affect the big picture i can make a difference on the ground right here and right now and these actions matter deeply to human well being construct it is easy to wreck something an angry toddler can with one impulsive swipe knock over a painstakingly built castle made of blocks we are going to see a lot of wrecking behavior in the coming months destructive actions driven by grievance bigotry the confluence of weakness and cowardice driving mostly men to hurt others because it makes them feel big to do so our job is to build often it will be repair work and that sucks because some sick man baby has broken something that was working well but we must still make those repairs however hasty or crude or makeshift they may be and just maybe it can be better as and when we can manage it to be so it might be tomorrow it might be next decade times change the future is not determined so many people are doing innovative work unheralded sticking with it year after year for example i subscribe to the climate action newsletter which highlights work that people around the world are doing with optimism and resolve i have work to do too that s why it matters that i focus my energy away from impotent outrage and despair and into my own work which happens to be writing novels short fiction non fiction essays like this one craft essays a few workshops and interviews podcasts and so on each time a person is lifted up or given solace or a moment of peace or joy from a work of art or from any kind of work even from a simple thank you that acknowledges their existence or something they have done this moment and that thank you expand the network of connection and construction that is the human way forward and the only way forward that s ever been we are the network that supports each other we build for our present and for our future keep building challenge first accept humility not only do i not know everything i don t really know that much and so i must always seek to learn and to listen this is true of living life in general and how much more true when faced with a time of crisis and cruelty now is an excellent time to listen and learn from those people both past and present who faced and are facing crisis and cruelty and have something to say about how we can live and what we can do during such times i will speak up and push back in ways that i believe will be meaningful this might be as simple as saying i don t agree with statement because answer during a conversation it might mean refusing to comply with a bullying demand that is unjust and which depends on your being cowed but which has no other force behind it it might be writing a letter to your congressperson or volunteering for vote riders or taking an online class in bystander intervention or any other organization that needs volunteers like meals on wheels or whatever local or nationwide work you are interested in it might mean donating to an organization that is doing critical legal work for a vulnerable population or effective support infrastructure work like a food kitchen some may choose to pick one issue to dig down into as their point of specialty for activism obviously many organizations already do this others will devise different strategies appropriate to their inclinations and these strategies may change over time for every individual the thing you are doing might be something you can t talk about online i will challenge myself comfort is a coping and caring device yes but there are times when i need to move into discomfort to look with open eyes upon humanity s inhumanity toward the most vulnerable and marginalized to push myself to try things i m not sure i can do to ask questions or receive answers that aren t easy or palatable to seek to understand how people time and again have suffered died survived and pushed back against authoritarianism and coercion to live with this as also being part of the human condition but never to normalize it or make excuses for it always to be certain in my mind of the truth that such actions are wrong and that i should always defy them however i can even if any one act of defiance may be as small as the flutter of wings or as large as a massive global strike it is also vital to remember that sometimes too often people push back simply by surviving and refusing to give up don t give up you matter i matter we matter things do get worse and all too often they get much worse yet never forget that people have come back from much worse although never all of them far too many get lost along the way never forget that everywhere in the world there are people working at the local or regional level to create more equitable systems healthier outcomes ecologically sound changes in how humans approach our earth some peace and more joy this is the challenge we wake up to every single day whether in the smallest personal sense or the largest global sense a better world is possible posted in uncategorized glasgow worldcon 2024 schedule and information posted on august 2 2024 by kate elliott i will be at glasgow worldcon and am happy to say hello and sign books any time scheduled appearances thursday august 8 epic appeal panel 4 00 pm gmt 1 forth armadillo bldg panel description below friday august 9 i ll be joining the glasgow pop up social 2 30 3 30 pm friday maybe saturday too in hall 4 open seating area note the pop up social runs thursday friday saturday from 2 4 pm hall 4 open seating area lots of different authors chat hang get books signed saturday august 10 two signings official autographing 10 00 am gmt 1 hall 4 autographs i will have bookplates and bookmarks so come and get something signed with or without books signing dealers room tachyon pub table 3 00 pm with ellen datlow and carrie vaughn sunday august 11 table talk 4 00 pm gmt 1 hall 4 table talks you have to sign up for this as there is limited seating please sign up also i have had wait listed people get in on the day because of no shows or cancellations and in one case because i told them to join us anyway because i was in australia and when else would they be able to see me read this i am excited to announce i will have with me six print arcs of the history of the world begins in ice stories and essays from the world of cold magic i ll be giving one away at the table talk reviewers who would like an early copy please track me down and ask i hope these arcs can go ...