Black and white spaniel sitting
Golden Retriever sitting
Hound dog sitting
Husky laying down
Gray Pitbull sitting
German Shepard sitting
Young Husky sitting
Jack Russel sitting
Cocker Spaniel sittting
Big, fuzzing brown puppy sitting

6 Tips for Beating Post Partum Book Depression and the Depressing News Around Us (Plus a LAILAH Giveaway)

by Martina Boone

I’ve heard other authors talk about it, but I never thought about it seriously as something that would happen to me. PPD. Post Partum Depression. I didn’t have it with either of my kids, although I’ve seen how debilitating it can be. Why would I get it after my debut novel?

Except.
COMPULSION is my baby. I’ve spent years focused on its conception, inception, growth, and welfare. And now it’s out in the world. 
There’s very little more I can do for it. I’ve given it over to the readers, and my publisher has moved on to other books, including my next book, and there’s a very real sense of exhaustion and anticlimax. All of that is exacerbated by environmental factors–what seems like a never-ending stream of bad news. The “news” news is bad enough. Ferguson. ISIS. Syria. The constant and seemingly escalating attacks on women around the world. And then there’s news on the personal front too with more bad news for my sister, and I feel helpless because there’s nothing that I can do to help her. 
My poor pup, Auggie the Wonder Dog, is having surgery this morning, too, for a torn ligament in his knee. I hate–HATE–that he is going through pain. Again, I feel helpless.

Helplessness. That’s the common denominator. I don’t DO helpless. I like control.

We writers are masters of our universes. We create whole worlds, surely we should be able to do something to improve what goes on around real world, no? 

Emphatically, in this instance, NO.

But since I like to write my way out of things, I’ve researched some ways to help myself feel better. Maybe they can help you, too, if you’ve got the holiday or writing blahs.

1.  Eating My Way Out of It. I’m eating Nutella and virtually everything chocolate, because ’tis the season. That produces dopamine, which can improve my mood, help my concentration, increase productivity, and make me feel generally less UGH. (Yes, that’s a technical term.) But chocolate isn’t necessarily the best source of dopamine. If you’re feeling blue or scattered and you want to survive the holiday season in the same size pants you started in, try apples, almonds, bananas, eggs, strawberries, and pumpkin seeds. They all offer dopamine boosts as well.
2. Walking It Off. There’s something to be said for this–exercise also produces dopamine, and helps to alleviate the guilt of all that chocolate. But it also gives me the time to think and focus on creating a new project.
3. Starting That New Project. There’s joy and hope in creation.  Putting myself back into the illusion of control by becoming the master of my fictional universe again is definitely part of my prescription.
4. Resetting Muscle Memory. Healthy eating, exercise, and immersing myself into a new project all require time, and time is at an increasing premium right now. The launch disrupted my “normal” routine, so it’s time to redefine what’s normal. I’m putting myself on a stricter schedule. Social media and marketing first thing. Writing in the morning/editing in the afternoon and evening. I’m also forcing myself to leave time to read for pleasure, because that keeps me sane and keeps me growing as a writer.
5. Focusing on the Stars. My son has ADHD, but medication didn’t work for him. To help him overcome his disruptive behavior at school, we kept a sticker journal. I made a list of everything that needed to be done that day, from brushing his teeth, to doing his homework, to remembering to say please and thank you. By including some easy goals every day, I built in a little bit of success, and I’m doing the same thing for myself by making my goals manageable. Instead of saying that I’m going to write 2000 words or review copyedits for ten chapters every day, I’m focusing on writing a paragraph, and editing a manageable amount of pages. Starting small. : ) 
6. Keeping a Gratitude Jar. I started putting good news and kind things people said into a jar last year so that I could pull them out when I was focusing on the not so good news. But I’m starting a new tradition now and focusing on kindness and gratitude. Not what has someone said, but what has someone done–not necessarily for me, for others, for the world in general. What *can* I be grateful for? Science suggests that focusing on that literally retrains the brain to see the positive.  

What about YOU? What techniques do you use to cope?

Please leave a comment below and share!

Some Good Things to Start Us Off

Just for Writers

Just For Fun

    Know What Else is Fun? LAILAH by Nikki Kelly!

    Who knew there was an original take on vampires left anywhere? Or angels! I loved this book.

    Are you team Jonah? Or team Gabriel?

    Don’t know yet? Okay. How about a giveaway? : )

    WIN LAILAH, PLUS LAILAH SWAG, and a COMPULSION SWAG PACK



    Lailah
    by Nikki Kelly
    Hardcover
    Feiwel & Friends
    Released 10/7/2014

    Over one million Wattpad readers have made Lailah a sensation!

    The girl knows she’s different. She doesn’t age. She has no family. She has visions of a past life, but no clear clues as to what she is, or where she comes from. But there is a face in her dreams – a light that breaks through the darkness. She knows his name is Gabriel.

    On her way home from work, the girl encounters an injured stranger whose name is Jonah. Soon, she will understand that Jonah belongs to a generation of Vampires that serve even darker forces. Jonah and the few like him, are fighting with help from an unlikely Allie – a rogue Angel, named Gabriel.

    In the crossfire between good and evil, love and hate, and life and death, the girl learns her name: Lailah. But when the lines between black and white begin to blur, where in the spectrum will she find her place? And with whom?

    Gabriel and Jonah both want to protect her. But Lailah will have to fight her own battle to find out who she truly is.

    Purchase Lailah at Amazon
    Purchase Lailah at IndieBound
    View Lailah on Goodreads

    And here’s some additional great LAILAH swag!

    Plus some COMPULSION swag!

    Enter below. : )

    a Rafflecopter giveaway

    Martina Boone

    Martina Boone is the award-winning author of the romantic southern gothic Heirs of Watson Island series, starting with COMPULSION from Simon & Schuster, Simon Pulse and the Celtic Legends Collection of novels set in Scotland, Cornwall, and Ireland beginning with LAKE OF DESTINY. She’s passionate about improving lives through literacy and the love of books, and she runs the Compulsion For Reading program to distribute books to underserved schools and libraries.

    She lives with her husband, children, Shetland Sheepdog Phinney, and Zoey the lopsided cat, and she enjoys writing contemporary romantic fiction with a hint of magic set in small towns and beautiful places. When she isn’t writing, she’s addicted to travel, horses, skiing, chocolate flavored tea, and anything with Nutella on it.

    Post © Martina Boone and/or Adventures in YA Publishing. All rights reserved.
    Posted: Dec 2, 2014
    Category: Imported from AYAP
    Tags: Martina Boone | Writing Goals | Writing Inspiration | YA Fiction Giveaways

    Welcome to Transmedia Mutts

    Yellow origami dog on a teal background

    Unleash your creative bark!

    Shout out to AYAP!

    Logo for Adventures in YA Publishing

    Thank you to the women who started Adventures in YA Publishing and ran it for years. AYAP and TMM have merged to form Adventures in PUPlishing, and the legacy AYAP posts are now part of TMM. Click here to learn more about the earlier AYAP team.

     

    Click to Join our Facebook Group

    Share advice, practice pitching, celebrate successes, and support each other through writing and publishing adventures.

    The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

    He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

    The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p> <p>Your main character needs to be:<br /> • Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br /> • Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br /> • Active enough to drive the story<br /> • Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p> <p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />
    The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p> <p>But your theme needs to be:<br /> • Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br /> • Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br /> • Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br /> • Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p> <p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />
    The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p> <p>In general, your plot should:<br /> • Hook readers fast<br /> • Build tension that a child can follow<br /> • Create page turns that feel natural<br /> • Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p> <p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.
    The Arms of your story are the side characters.
    The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p> <p>Your setting should:<br /> • Make your character's world feel real<br /> • Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br /> • Connect different scenes and moments organically<br /> • Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p> <p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

    After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

    The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black. 

    Use of this site constitutes an agreement to our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

    AFFILIATE LINK DISCLAIMER: This site contains affiliate links, images, and ads to purchase various products. As an Amazon Associate, and a member of other affiliate programs, this site earns a commission from qualifying purchases if you click on one of these links, images, or ads.

    © 2025 Transmedia Mutts, LLC. All Rights Reserved.