A New Season

When we last saw our fearless writer, she was at 40k in her manuscript, still in Act One, and very encouraged.

My, my… what a difference a month makes.

Today is September 1^st, the end of the Second Round of my self-imposed Nano.

The good news is I am a few hundred words from the 70k mark.

The better news is I am in Act Two of the book.

The surprising news is I have switched manuscripts altogether.

That’s right: I’ve put away my former book and picked up another work-in-progress.

The reasons were many, but the bare bones truth is that first book, though dear to my heart, is not yet ready to be written.

And it only took me six months to realize that.

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The light bulb moment came last month while H and I were having an in-house date. He’d said something profound—which he is randomly apt to do—prompting me to announce my official retirement from pressuring myself to finish the first book in x-number of days because forcing the story to congeal was driving me to madness.

(And not the good kind we writers need to be productive.)

The next day, I was digging in my WIPs folder and found another favorite story idling at 51k. And bonus of all bonuses, I knew exactly where I wanted to take it. There were no characterization issues, plot holes, or other such maladies impeding potential progress.

So I informed H I was setting aside the first book to work on this other one.

And to his credit, he did not say, “You mean like I suggested six months ago? And three months before that?”

Instead he said, “Cool, Babe.”

(And that’s why I love him. His “I told you so’s” are few and well-disguised.)

So on August 6^th, I switched stories and have since added18k to this new manuscript. I am so excited about this decision and have every confidence I will complete the first draft by October 1^st.

And in that spirit of excitement, I will not suspend my blog another month. If I can update my most recent Twilight fanfiction weekly, then I can certainly keep a similar blogging schedule. I will not update my word count again until October 1^st, however, aiming to announce the completion of this new manuscript on that happy day.

In the meantime, there will be many happy days to chronicle in-between, including today. The first day of this month happens to be on a Sunday, and my Christ-centered mind finds something extra special about that.

The perfect way to kick off the new season.

And it is a new season, friends. Not just for football or school or Scandal--okay, that Season Premiere is another thirty-three days away, but just go with me here--but in our lives. As the heat of summer yields to autumn's subtle cool, we too can yield to our quieter impulses, harken to that still, small voice inside leading us this way not that.

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And if we can do that, if we can take that chance, we may discover what we've been searching for all along. My first book was not the answer, but as I followed my instincts concerning it, I uncovered a possibility I might otherwise have missed.

So here's to a season of newness and discovery, of quiet voices and noble journeys.

And a completed first draft in the next 30 days.