Hey guys, happy Friday! It’s been a busy one this week and for those of us who like to read during a good rain storm, it’s been another good couple of days for that. I was excited by the number of folks who came to read my post the other day as well as the likes and I can’t thank you guys enough for coming back each time. And to those of you who are new here? Welcome!

I mentioned the other day that I’ve been quite productive lately and it’s been great. I’m actually about to start writing chapter 20 after I finish this post and just last week at this time, I was happy I had just passed the ‘dirty dozen’ mark. So that has been a bonus for this week. What has been driving me crazy though is that I hit a chapter that caused me to have a little lull. A little lack of, I don’t know, excitement maybe? For lack of a better word.

Let me be clear, I’m not writing an action adventure thing that will turn into a Summer blockbuster down the line (and who I will never champion Tom Cruise for). Rather, mine is but a romcom with some deeper stuff in it as well. Or at least, that is what I’m going for. However, every book that you read or write has those couple of chapters that are just there to bridge the story from one place to another and that is where I am now. I’m not saying they are boring. (Hoping they are not.) What I am saying is that I’m excited for the next chapter and wanted to skip over these last two to get to the next one. There is still a lot going on, a lot of information dolled out and even more character development of course, but as I am living vicariously through these people, I’m just excited for their next adventure. 

Last night I even had trouble sitting down to write. I didn’t know where the words were going to take me and I still have yet to reread and edit them before I continue writing tonight. What I do know is this, much like I do with this blog, I just sit down and start writing. That’s it.

This is how I wrote my last two chapters. I had blocks, I had worries, I had “well now what do I do now that I wrote them into this issue” and yet, I just kept writing.

I ended up liking one chapter a lot. It turned out better than I thought it did and when I read/edited it, I actually laughed in some places. (Yes in the spots that were meant to be funny.) So somewhere in my mind, the story is still there guiding me. Yesterday was a bit tougher. I had a vision of where it was going to go, how to get past the lull a little bit more and make it not so, I don’t know, day-to-day? Yet after a bit of writing the first scene, the typing continued. I once again did an almost automatic writing session and because I did, I came up with a new twist I hadn’t even thought of before. A way to tie some pieces together that honestly, never crossed my mind once and again, this is at chapter 19! I was able to add some more depth, some more emotion and some more backstory to characters that deserve to have their stories told.

I hope I’m not building myself up here. This is by no means the next ‘great American novel’ and I’m hoping that if you are reading this now, I’m not ruining anything for you if you decide to read what is finally published. I’m just trying to share part of my process here. I sometimes start off blind. No clue where the story will take me. I just know that if I take more than a day off, I feel like I’m failing myself. That if I miss more than a day of working on this story, the story will leave me.

As much as I like to keep my schedule going, there are times when it isn’t meant to happen. I encourage listening to yourself and how you feel. This goes for anything, not just writing. Case in point, the other night, I had an idea for the next chapter and wanted to get it down, but I hadn’t been feeling good at all the entire night. When I sat down to write, it felt more like a chore, more like homework, more like I had some deadline I was supposed to meet when in reality, I have none. I read and edited the chapter from the night before, but when it came time to write the next one, I got three sentences in and stopped. My eyes and head were pounding looking at the screen. It was pouring outside and I decided to shut off the devices and dive further into the book that I’m currently reading, which, btw, I’m loving. There is nothing like reading during a good storm and once I got off the glare of my iPad, I started to feel a lot better.

What I’m saying is this…there are times the story needs to come out but the body isn’t willing. There are times when the story is stuck, but the mindset is to keep going. Just start writing. You may be surprised. It will either flow or you will get the clear sign that it’s just not going to happen in the moment. But you’ll never know unless you just start writing.

And that’s where I’ll leave you today! Thanks for joining me today, be sure to check out the links below and I wish you guys a great weekend!!!

Until next time…Cheers!

– 

– 

Liking my site? (Thank you!) Be sure to sign up for email updates on when a new post goes up by clicking on the blue button top right. 

– 

To check out the book I’m reading now: Meet Me in the Margins by Melissa Ferguson

(loving this book and will hate to see it end).

–

To follow me on social and shop my linktree shop: linktr.ee/promosocially

– 

You can find my official merch shop, link to blank journals all designed by me as wel as more of my links, see the sidebar. If you also like reading in the rain, I added a new design to the merch shop celebrating it!

– 

If you ‘ve made it this far, thanks so much! 🙂