Welcoming the new year

And sharing very raw outlines of what I hope to do more of

Hola, dearest reader,

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you.

My hope is that you are reading this while being cozy at the darkest time of the year, while the transition from one year to another happens. Whatever you celebrate - Yule, Christmas, or New Year’s Eve, I hope it was peaceful and meaningful to you.

I know that many people cannot have the luxury of a holiday break, but I also hope we all can do at least a little something to relax. This year I am not traveling anywhere for the holiday time, and I cannot express how happy I am with this situation. After 2 years of the immigration process and forced trips, the idea that a trip can be something one does for the purpose of joy feels weird.

Non-traveling brings me slowness and peace, instead of anxiety as it was before.

General vibes from our new apartment and our pueblos

Surprisingly, I have read quite a lot this year; I also have written quite a bit. I even have a writing computer now, which is an old corporate notebook of my partner. I inherited it after his employer provided him with a new shiny machine. This writing computer has the most tactile and pleasing keyboard I have ever used on portable computers. It may even compete with the keyboard of my very, very old MacBook Pro. So I hope it will lure me to write more in 2025.

I also hope (and aim) for more art-making next year. Non-traveling will also help with that. I want to start painting on canvas again. I enrolled myself in a digital painting course which will start in March. I would love to dabble in pixel art lettering. And I am looking forward to creating more photography for clients and for personal projects.

Immigration hits hard on the creative powers; I know some people who got wrapped in a full-blown art crisis due to immigration. I am very, very glad that I cannot report such a thing about myself. I have a ton of stuff I want to introduce into the world and share with you. My issue is of another nature; immigration ruins all the routines and social connections one had before, so I spend a lot of energy to establish new ways for me and my family. And thus, the creative process goes rather slowly. I was irritated with that, blamed myself, but then I remembered what my therapist said to me once - you are still in survival mode, Vera; as much as you are a quick adapter, this all is pretty new and raw. And yes, everything just takes time. A lot of time.

I looked back at my year while I was editing 1 second everyday video (ended up with more then 1 second per day most of the time) and I see how intense, how deep the year has been. No wonder it was not much energy left for actual art making. Here is the video I ended up with. I personally recommend this practice to you, very rooting and reflective. It is my sixth year doing those.

So below I mention books that grabbed my attention the most this year. If you have any book recs that you think I absolutely must read - the comment section is open. I am a very omnivorous reader, so I am curious about what you would recommend to me after reading my dispatches for some while. What perception of me do you have through the books you think I might love? I want to read even more this year. So yeah, send them in.

I did not set any reading goal for 2024 and I won’t do it in 2025, because reading is love, not competition, but somehow I read almost 40 books. Some of them were VERY impressive.

From the realm of fiction, I would single out “Parable of the Sower” by Octavia Butler and “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy. Both quite grim, but oh well.

From the non-fiction land, I would love to mention “The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel van der Kolk and “Slow Productivity” by Cal Newport.

At the border of memoir and comic, the special place in my heart is held by “The Fun House” by Alison Bechdel (the Bechdel test is her term, by the way, which I did not know before).

The most intriguing and inspiring author for me this year is Leigh Bardugo.

And again, let me wish you a peaceful year,

I hope you will read more of me here,

Best wishes,

Vera

If you’d like to support my work on any scale, you can Buy Me A Coffee. It will help me greatly to spend more time making art.