Bringing Intentionality Into 2026

Others have already said as much, but 2025 was a rough year. Looking back, it seems like I fell into a kind of hole in the first half of the year, a sludge of daily routines and unhealthy habits that allowed me to wallow in the feelings of stuckness that had been building up around me for several years. The blankness of that time is evidenced by the fact that my usual year in review post didn’t come until March, a delayed attempt to shift my headspace with new habit forming (which collapsed shortly thereafter).

That’s not to say that there was no good in the early months of the year. I traveled and spent time with family friends. I discovered books, media, and games to help me escape, become inspired, and connect with the creativity and brilliance of a wide variety of creators. I engaged in sketching, drawing, and art to sooth my emotions and soul.

But these moments of brightness didn’t change the feeling that I was in a tunnel and struggling to figure out which way to turn to find the light.

A shift came at the end of May when I wrote down and explored my feelings about turning 45 years old and the ever-persistent longing for some kind of wonder and magic, like Molly Grue in The Last Unicorn. I think this was a turning point for me — not only because the post resonated with a number of people, but because it allowed me to dredge up and provide space for emotions I’d let sink deep inside. The key message from that post was that maybe I shouldn’t wait around for wonder to come to me, maybe I should be trying to create a sense of wonder in my own life.

Without that realization, I don’t think I would have made my most momentous decision of the year — moving to a new apartment in the Sacramento area. My apartment at the time was great, with a wonderful roommate and (relatively) low rent. But after 15 years of living there, I had settled into a kind of stasis of unhealthy habits. My hope was that by moving to a new place of my own in a new city, I would be able to shift the blocked up energy, creativity, patterns, and habits that have been contributing to me feeling stuck for several years.

So, in August and September, I spent my weekends exploring the Sacramento area, looking at apartment complexes in locations that I liked — and I found the perfect place for me. My new apartment brings me so much joy. I love the space (and price), which has big windows looking out into a courtyard full of trees and greenery. I love having the opportunity to fill my home with art and furniture that feel like me (a work in progress), and I love having enough space to have a proper desk where I can do my creative work.

Of course, you can’t outrun your habits — and I certainly have brought some of my old patterns with me into my new home. Most notably, I still crave distraction and will loose myself on social media for hours, if given the chance (I know I’m not alone in that). Addressing those habits will be an ongoing process.

At the same time, I’m also shaping some new patterns. I’ve started to cook more, delving into simple healthy recipes (partially thanks to discovering certain creators during my endless scrolling, such as Marianna Moore and Liam/The Plant Slant). I’ve been playing around with my new acrylic markers in my sketchbook and writing in my journal. And I’ve been spending time with my cousins, who also live in the local area.

Small shifts that can lead to larger changes, and I’m hoping my new home will continue to lead to those small shifts.

Five Things That Made My 2025

1. Moved Home – By far, moving had the biggest effect on my year (as I already noted), with a trickle effect into all areas of my life. I only had a small amount of furniture when I moved, so I’ve been slowly filling in with pieces I enjoy — including a desk that converts to a standing position and a new, dark green couch that I absolutely love.

2. Monochrome Heights was released by One Frog Games – Patrick Knisely first asked if I would be interested in working with him on the narrative for Monochrome Heights, a supremely difficult platformer with a twist, in September 2022. After over three years of work, in which I helped to design the narrative structure, write cinematic sequences and branching dialog, and edit all of the phasebot barks, the game is now out in the world for people to play. I’m so pleased with the work I contributed to this game, and even more delighted to have had such a wonderful experience working with Patrick.

3. I participated in the Neo-Twiny Jam – The jam challenges storytellers and game designers to create works of interactive fiction and games with less than 500 words. I loved the constraint and completed two new browser games for the jam:

   1. “Scrapbook,” a sweet little interactive fiction about the nostalgia of finding an old scrapbook

   2. “Take a Walk,” a tiny visual novel that explores the experience of taking a walk to clear one’s negative thoughts

4. Traveled to Seattle for WorldCon – It may have been in the midst of a heatwave, but my trip to Seattle was a wonderful experience. I journeyed around the Seattle area, exploring the city and beyond. Then, during WorldCon, I immersed myself in deep conversations on books, games, and all things nerdy — an absolute delight. (My two-part recap is here and here.)

5. Closed out my journal – I’ve always a bit sporadic on making journal entries, which means it takes me a long time to fill every page of a journal. In this case, it took two years to complete the journal — every page is now filled with thoughts, travel logs, sketches, and collage. And now I’m free to open the clean slate of a brand new journa.

Looking to 2026: Intention and The Year of Games

Already, the new year is a lot. The world continues to be a mess in a multitude of both new and old ways, and I often feel so helpless in the wake of the ongoing bad news cycle. Meanwhile, the ground beneath my own feet often feels unstable (even as I hold to the hope of shaping my life in this new home).

I’m trying to focus on the things I can control — my work, how I treat the people around me, the small acts of resistance I can take against the rising tide of awful.

To that end, my word of the year is Intention.

In the last year (and years previous), I often fell into a blind adherence to habit. My days rolled by and I barely recognized their passing, each one blurring into the next. And I hate the vague, empty quality of letting time just slip away from me in the midst of distraction.

So, my aim is to shift toward intention, acting with intentionality in my day to day choices. Instead of just mindlessly grabbing my phone in the morning and starting the day with mind-numbing videos, I am shifting toward a morning routine that sets me on a more grounded foundation (something I’m still figuring out). Instead of just grabbing whatever is easiest in the kitchen, I am cooking more and creating meals that are easy, healthy, delicious, and will last me several days (something I’m already doing since the move).

That doesn’t mean I’m never allowed to check social media or watch youtube videos. It just means that when I do so, I would like it to be a conscious choice instead of a default action.

With that in mind, I am also declaring 2026 to be The Year of Games. Instead of spreading myself thin trying to chase a thousand different creative projects, I will be steering the bulk of my creative energies towards writing, designing, and crafting games. More of the essays, reviews, and critiques that I write will be focused on games, and I’ll be working towards building relationships with game writers, designers, and creators.

At the beginning of the year, I officially kicked off a year-long mentorship program with The Narrative Department, which is focused on helping me build relationships and shifting my career toward the games industry. My mentor is amazing, and I have a lovely group of fellow game writers that I’m meeting with each week to support each other’s progress and goals.

Other areas of my creative life will still be present, of course. Poetry and art are vital aspects of my creativity and mental health. Plus, both poetry and art are part of the foundation in the way I approach game writing anyway.

So, as I move forward into this new year, I’m doing so with hope. It may seem a thin wisp of thing and hard to hold onto in this world, but I will continue to cling to it, because I refuse to let this world crush me down into despair.

Since it is the Year of Games, please take a moment to check out my game writing portfolio. Maybe play one of the free browser games I created and, if you like it, share it with others.

What I’ve Been Working On

Most of my energy has been focused on settling into my new home. I’ve been emptying boxes and cleaning up clutter, finding places and spaces for all my books, art, and other objects, as well as purchasing new furniture, kitchen tools, and other necessary items. My main living area, including my office space, are starting to feel homey, and eventually, the rest of my home will as well.

Some unboxing still needs to be done, art needs to make its way up onto the walls, and several pieces of furniture still need to be purchased. It’s an ongoing process, one that I’m going to enjoy over time.

In the midst of settling in, I also completed a review and three posts over the last month, including:

• 'Lake Mungo' and the Unsetting Horror of Sorrow: — Much of Lake Mungo balances on this question of whether hauntings-and specifically, the haunting of the Palmer family-are real. Though fictional, the movie presents itself as a grounded, unbiased documentary, balancing the perspectives of believers with those who are more skeptical.

• Ten Movies and TV Shows I Loved in 2025

• Games I Loved in 2025

• Books I Loved in 2025

Good Reads

Holly Lyn Walrath shares “Seven Lessons for My Past Self on Running a Small Press”: