I’d been at a writers conference all week. For an introvert, the constant presence of 500 other people took its toil, not because I didn’t enjoy them, but because they were about 499 too many. I was on overload both from people and information. My emotions had been all over the place, as I sat with agents critiquing my work and listened to veterans in the industry.
I was ready to leave.
I sat in my car and planned my next move — music or an audio book? I had five and a half hours that I could use to mull over all that I’d taken in. I could use it to pray and ask the Lord what to do next. Or…I could escape.
I chose escape.
I plugged in my phone and chose one of the downloaded “free” audio books from my public library (I am a librarian after all), and started the car.
A short stop later for a drive-through meal and a fill up, and I was into the book. I thought of nothing else and drove steadily home. I took only one pit stop (which is a record for me) and was home by 4 p.m.
Once home, I realized how much I had zoned everything else out but the story I was hearing. I needed that.
I’m a nonfiction reader at heart, but yesterday, I realized the value of a good fictional story to remove me from all that was pressing in. It gave me the release I needed; I could decompress.
So, today, I’m catching up after a week away, sitting at my computer and ready to face the next step in my writing career and life.
Do you need to escape? Try a good book.
Grace and Peace