I'm not going to lie team-- Iʻm struggling. I have chosen to write a memoir for my MA thesis and I am a six months away from graduation, and I do not even have a basic draft of my memoir. I keep writing, deleting, writing, having a panic attack about it not being good enough, deleting. Itʻs made me postpone graduation once, and I am scared it will happen a second time. I need to do things differently, which is why Iʻve joined this group. I enjoy the community so much. I figured if anyone could share this kind of anxiety, it might be folks here. Any advice or kinship would be so appreciated (a virtual hug sent out to all).

How do you make sure you get your writing done on a regular basis? Do you block time, and do things tend to get in the way? Do you write in short bursts whenever little pockets of time open up throughout the day? I find it kind of hard. The way everything else can seem more urgent and "I'll just do the writing later" then before you know it a whole month has passed 😅 And it isn't only time-sensitive tasks taking over, there's also fluctuating chronic illness and the many unexpected demands that come with it. What seems to work best for me are hour-long online writing sessions. I can't do early morning ones, and sometimes I can only do half the session, but I like writing with other people. I put on café sounds in the background (from Youtube) and it reminds me of the writing I used to do in cafés before I was so ill. I used to write outside the house a lot but now I can no longer do that it's been so hard. Share your tactics!

Right now, I’m reading and rereading Astrid Parker Doesn’t Fail, which is a comfort read for me—a sapphic romance novel. It’s interesting to go outside of my usual genres; I never read romance novels until very recently. At the same time, I’m reading a forthcoming memoir by Morgan Parker. What are you reading, and how are you feeling/thinking about it?

Hi all! I’m Bailey, and I’m coming onboard as Esme’s assistant following Dan’s departure. I’m passionate about community and want to help this one continue to thrive and grow. Feel free to reach out at bailey@esmewang.com if you need help with anything. More soon 💫✨

Word limit for flash prose: 1500 words. Line limit for poetry: 200 Lines word limit for prose and creative non-fiction essays: 3000 words All contributions will be paid $500 Deadline: 31 March 2025, will be published in a NewSouth books disability_anthology@mascarareview.com https://www.mascarareview.com/submissions-open-for-disability-anthology/