The year 2011 slipped away, heading toward the end... ah, no, toward the coming of 2012.

Looking back on this year... it feels like it was nothing but grueling hardship, pure and simple.

Of course, there were many moments worth celebrating, especially for me. This year, I finally managed to escape the ranks of the struggling, unpublished writers—whether I'll ever fall back into that abyss is a question for another day.

It's the end of the year now, only a few hours left before it concludes, so I should follow the example of those great authors and pen a retrospective. At the start of the year, the football novel I was working on entered its final stages, officially wrapping up shortly after the Spring Festival.

What followed was a two-month hiatus. Those weeks weren't easy, actually, because the initial concepts I prepared were ruthlessly rejected, forcing me to spend the subsequent days wrestling with new ideas.

The legendary first "Zhang" (Palm Strike) was born, but its initial reception wasn't as magnificent as I had hoped. Fortunately, that period of misery didn't last long; a sweet spell quickly arrived.

Thinking back now, it was still so... well...

satisfying? What happened next, most of you have already witnessed; I experienced many firsts this year.

My first time breaking ten thousand views, my first time reaching the top ten on the monthly ticket chart for a new book, my first major cover feature, and my first attempt at publishing ten thousand words daily. The first four were pure bliss; the last endeavor was something I endured with a strange mix of pain and pleasure.

After maintaining that grueling pace for half a year, I finally couldn't hold out any longer in these final two months and had to slow my update speed. Writer's block on the plot wasn't the main issue; those snags were usually just minor details.

The primary problem was sheer exhaustion. During those two months, I reached a point where even looking at written text made me nauseous.

I lost the mood to even read the novels I loved most. I'd find several promising titles, but opening them to see pages saturated with text instantly brought on a wave of irritation.

So, this period has been one of necessary adjustment. I genuinely hope to settle back into rhythm as soon as possible, especially since a new year is dawning, and I want to start it off right.

Well, that’s roughly it. Did I just ramble on about a bunch of nonsense?

But then again, isn't a summary inherently a collection of one’s own rambling thoughts? You all read it for a moment of amusement and then move on.

Finally, I wish everyone smooth sailing and fulfillment in the coming year.