After an overwhelming fall, things may finally be settling. Today I rose early and kicked my kids out of their beds. Grabbed my cup of coffee. Snatched a peaceful moment for devotions … and now I’m sipping that coffee as I watch snow drift over the hills of Corning from my office window.

Project 86 croons on my music box.

My mind wanders as I prepare to dive into the third installment of Atom & Go. I have about 45 minutes for the crew to press on into the unknown interior of the giant ship they are on.

Writing is a way in which a lot of authors cope with and digest what’s happening in the world around them. For me, it’s more of an escape. When the world vomits more than I can handle I retreat into sleep or into a realm where I can vent my frustration with massive explosions or gun down my fears.

It often takes me time to understand what I can and cannot change.

That doesn’t mean I don’t pay attention or get frustrated. I have moments of wanting to rage quit reality and times where I want to crawl back into bed until all this is over.

But if I did that, Atom and Go would be stuck in eternal limbo.

We can’t have that.

So, I’ll take a moment to enjoy my coffee. I’ll watch the snow drift across my window. I will keep driving forward and throw off the mental chains the world has shackled me with this year.

We all need to do that.

The entire world has massed to hold down our creative spirits. We need to remember that nobody controls our minds but us.

We need to break the negative shackles of people telling us we can’t.

Even if we can’t leave our homes, even if the world is trying to lock down our souls. We have our own avenues of escape. Each of us is gifted with a creative ability. We just need to tap into that ability and create.

It took me some time, but I finally feel like I’m getting back to that place.

So rise with me. Keep on reading, keep creating, and keep on flying the black.