Couldn't quite come up with a properly descriptive topic title.
In my years of gaming, I've found that the saddest way for a campaign to die is by having a few sessions in a row be canceled, or taking an extended break.
In that time, players (including myself) will slowly disconnect from their characters, and start dreaming up new PCs.
Usually when the campaign restarts, it's hard to have the same investment as you did before. A lot of important details may be forgotten.
It's hard to re-ignite the campaign, and often we end up starting a new one.
As a GM currently, I'm afraid of the same thing happening. I need a break to plan out new petals, but I think skipping more than a week or two would prove fatal.
Do other people have a similar experience? Have you figured out a way past it?
Perhaps some mini-engagement for the players to keep them in touch with their characters would help, that's at the same time low-effort for the DM...
Keep in contact with the players, have them plan out what they want to do when they get back going, and drop some hints about upcoming events.
You just gotta keep connected.
Make sure to break at an appropriate time, too. If you have closure on everything and then take a break, the campaign can feel "done". You want your players to continue, you want them to be excited.
Finally, when you start back up, make sure the GM does a big "previously on..." that summarizes events up until now, repeats important details, and recounts big things the PCs have done to get them into the groove.
I'm my group, we alternate GM's month to month, so its essentially, four weeks on, four weeks off for each of the two campaigns.
The main thing that we lose is people having to reacclimate themselves to their characters during the first session of the month, after that, its pretty much back to normal.
I find that a summary of the previous month's events emailed out before the first session of the month also helps to get them back into the swing of things.
As a GM currently, I'm afraid of the same thing happening. I need a break to plan out new petals, but I think skipping more than a week or two would prove fatal.
RP SESSION HOE!!!!
Consider keeping a journal of the characters exploits which lists the little details, or compile a recap synopsis of 'what has come before' if you have an actual extended time frame break. I have had a few games die after long breaks but more have successfully restarted.
I usually spend the start/first half of the resume session in recap/question answering.