So Ends Another

Well, it’s officially over. Or at least, it will be in about 3 ½ hours. The first week of the school year is winding down. Now that it is, I can look back at the week and get a better sense of how to adapt going forward.

We got off to a strong start, but I’ve been struggling to find time to get in any writing. I realized I was going to have to change my approach and strategies, but it seems like as soon as I tried to implement them, it’s just been one thing after another. I’ve managed to log 5 pages all week… that’s my daily goal!

I’d wanted to finish a spooky fun middle-grade monster academia by today, literally today. That’s just plain old not going to happen now. What’s more, that means I need to shift my focus to another project, so it’s looking like it’s going to have to go back burner for now.

I’m not going to lie. That bugs me. I started drafting this manuscript over a year ago, and now it’s going to go straight back on hold. How can’t I be annoyed with myself? But, unfortunately, that’s the way things go sometimes, especially when things start sticking.

That’s right. I’m not sure if I want to call it burnout, writing/creative fatigue, writer’s block, or what, but I’ve been struggling to move forward on this project. I’ve hit the point where I feel like I’m spinning tires in the middle of the book. A sort of, “Hey! Weren’t we just here like 2 chapters ago?” So, maybe it’s for the best that I shelf it and work on something else.

There is a very old project of mine, one that I finished back in 2012, that I am dying to get back to. It’s an urban fantasy that desperately wanted to be a paranormal romance. I know I can have it ready for February and Valentine’s Day, but there is a very big hangup with it. In order to write it, I have to let my mind go to a very, very dark place, which means I can only work on it in short bursts. So while normally my daily goal is 5 pages with other projects, this one caps at 2, and sometimes, even that little is a major stress on me.

I’m not looking forward to that part, but I am ready to bring this one out.