Today’s post is a little late in that it should have been last Friday’s post. But that’s okay. Life happens. And in this case, I have a good excuse.

I was busy finishing the second draft of The Dragon’s Last Flight.

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Is it the last draft? Probably not. Do I still have coding to do, art to incorporate, music to match, sound effects to find, and a lot of alpha and beta testing to do before it is ready to publish? Of course. In the wider scope of things, it wasn’t all that big a deal, really.

But all the same, celebrating small victories plays a huge role in staying motivated and honestly, in stressful times like these, staying sane. It’s as true in writing as it is in any other part of life.

So when I finished that second draft, I was kind to myself. I poured myself a glass of one of my favorite wines. I had some carrot cake for dessert (hey, it was also Earth Day, so we bought a small cake to celebrate that, too). I took a long bath, and I patted myself on the back for a job well done.

I was exhausted, and still stressed, but beneath all of that, a bit proud, too. It feels good to make tangible progress, and few things felt better last week than hitting the “send” button on an email to Odd Lazdo sharing the newly completed draft with a note: “HAPPY FRIDAY!”

There are a lot of big things happening right now, many of them not so great—and it may not seem like there aren’t many big good things happening to balance them out. This is why it’s more important than ever to celebrate those “small” victories, whatever they may be, as often as you can.

Be proud of your progress. Even one step forward is still a step in the right direction. Keep writing, if you write. Keep reading, whatever it is you like to read. And keep moving forward, one step at a time.

To check out the free demo of The Dragon’s Last Flight, head over to the project page on itch.io!