Finishing this manuscript was challenging in ways I just didn't expect. But, after many ten and twenty minute writing sprints where I watched the word count slowly creep up, I can finally say that the first draft of MS:L is complete! This last week, the last week of writing this manuscript, proved to be a... Continue Reading →
Writing after a Break
Last week I wrote about 9,000 new words in MS:L. It took a minute to get back into the rhythm of working on it, but it felt really good to move the story that much closer to its’ ending. Getting back into a story after taking a break from writing can be a really refreshing... Continue Reading →
A Word to Lean Into, Quarter 1 Reflections
My word for 2021 is culminate and it has served to both motivate my work and motivate my rest this first quarter of the year. This week I especially leaned into it as I navigated how I was going to leave my period of rest after a few weeks off from writing and set goals... Continue Reading →
Managing Writer Fatigue
There are points during the year when writing fatigue kicks in. Deciding how to react to it, whether it's time to push on through a deadline like during NaNoWriMo or to take a break from the relentless pace I've set myself on, is important both for my own balance and for my stories. I've found... Continue Reading →
Ignoring the Siren Call of Things Not Known
When I am writing a story, I love to research what I'm writing. This is true when it's a subject I'm fairly familiar with, like cooking or crafting, and it's also true with subjects I don't have much experience in, like outdoor survival skills or variants in algebra. When I run into those things I'm... Continue Reading →
Self-Doubt, Realigning, and Pups
Last week presented a few bumps in the road that required realigning of the goals I’d set for the week. Normally, that’s a fairly uncomplicated process. That is, until self-doubt invites itself to the party. 🤦🏻♀️ The self-doubt arrived when I completed the one chapter I was able to write before I needed to realign... Continue Reading →
How Goals Change
Every time I go from one month to the next, I take a moment to look over what my goals were, versus what they became, versus what I focused on. It happens, quite often, that those things are very, very different. Setting goals and planning is always important because it gives me an idea of... Continue Reading →
Grappling with the Timeline
Last week I really struggled with the timeline of the story. Trying to overlay the chapters to an actual calendar spread of the months that the story was going to span proved to be really difficult. I started this piece of the process for two reasons. First was because I wanted to see what the... Continue Reading →
Diving into the Manuscript
Should it surprise me when my character do things I don't expect them to? No. DOES it still surprise me every time they do? Yes, yes it does. Characters going rogue is a really intriguing occurrence in writing, especially because I am such a planner. I take the time to outline what the story is... Continue Reading →
Getting Ready to Write
It’s so comforting to feel the familiarity of my routines as I get ready to start working on a manuscript. Each piece of my process feels like wrapping myself in a favorite blanket and the excitement builds each step of the way. Last week I did nearly everything I needed to in order to start... Continue Reading →