Mason Currey on post-project depression

in his latest advice column, writer and editor Mason Currey responds to a message from a writer with post-project depression, who describes it as:

“I sit around for much too long, worried I’ll never make anything again, fearful that there is nothing left in my creative brain, terrified I’m a failure.”

having just completed a big writing goal in December before swiftly falling into a confused, January-flavored fog, i’m all ears.

Currey curates a range of advice from painter Helen Frankenthaler to psychiatrist Carl Jung to actor Daniel Day-Lewis. which is so great because, arguably, the most reassuring advice you can give someone is: “you are not alone in this.”

(it’s also reminiscent of the work he does in his spectacular book Daily Rituals, which catalogues the routines of inspired minds throughout history, highlighting their idiosyncrasies and drawing out the universal themes.)

in the end, i love what Currey says about the impulse to label these fallow periods “self-indulgent angst:”

“That’s like telling someone who just finished a marathon, and who’s standing on the side of the road huddled in one of those reflective silver space blankets, sipping from a paper cup of water and eating a sad little banana, ‘Hey, bud, stop slacking off and get started on your next race already, will ya?!?!’”

read past advice columns or sign up for Mason Currey’s newsletter!

horizontal thinking

i bookmarked an instagram post by writer Elizabeth Gilbert in which she decries the dangers of “horizontal thinking.”

“The most dangerous place in the world for me was lying alone in bed — not sleeping, not reading, but THINKING. And the most dangerous part of my day was that time period between when I woke up and when I stood up. And the longer I extended that time period — the longer I stayed in bed, captivated by what I came to call ‘horizontal thinking’ — the worse off I would be. The disease of my depression wanted me to stay horizontal for as long as possible, where it had me hostage.”

comedian Gary Gulman, who shares mental health and comedy writing tips via his twitter, once said:

or take Gilbert’s advice:

“I created a script to say to my mind: ‘If you are awake enough to tell me that I am history’s biggest piece of shit, then you are awake enough to start the day.’ That empowered me to stand up. And sometimes, standing up is the biggest victory of all.”