I have been S-T-U-C-K in my manuscript the past few weeks.
As context, I started doing the pre-work for this manuscript before the holidays and started drafting in mid-February. The last month or two, I’ve been so close to the end of this initial draft and yet the actual end started feeling farther and farther away despite my growing word count.
I dragged myself to the page and attempted to write my way into an ending, but it wasn’t working and I found myself dreading my writing time.
I procrastinated.
I made excuses.
I found plenty of other work to do instead.
I started scheduling things that conflicted with my daily writing time instead of protecting it.
The words writer’s block bubbled up to the surface last week and that’s when I knew I had to do something.
Because I don’t believe in writer’s block.
I don’t.
Writer’s block takes the control out of the writer’s hands and we, as the writer, always have control (I mean, until our characters wake us up in the middle of the night needing to take a road trip to San Francisco for seemingly no reason…but that’s another story).
Writer’s block is just code for something that isn’t working. And when something isn’t working, it feels uncomfortable.
Like REALLY uncomfortable. So we avoid writing, give in to distraction, call it a block and then excuse ourselves from having to fix it.
Or at least that’s what I used to do.
Not this time.
I decided to take my power back.
I love helping writers get unstuck. It’s kind of my super power. Come to me with a draft you don’t know how to revise or an idea you can’t figure out how to write, and I want to find the solution that unlocks your creativity to conquer the challenge.
I decided I might need to put a little of that creative energy toward my own process.
Not always easy to do for yourself.
My strategy: I made a commitment and a plan.
I blocked out an entire day to work ONLY on my manuscript. Nothing else.
I went back to my original pre-writing work and read through it. It became clear why certain things were working and others weren’t.
I did more character interviews to suss out a weak story goal and stakes.
I sketched out a sturdier timeline.
I sat with all the discomfort and did a lot of staring out the window.
The day dragged on. And on. And on.
I wanted so badly to move on to something else. Something easier. But I didn’t. I was exhausted by the end of the day but had a solid plan for how to finish this draft AND move into next stage revisions.
I figured that would have to be enough.
The next day, I felt excitement sitting down at the page. My first indication that things were different.
Then, I wrote 1,622 words in an hour.
That’s a fast, fast pace for me. And not only that, I finished knowing what I need to write tomorrow. And the next day.
I’m amazed at the results of my one-day immersion.
I needed to try something new. Something outside my usual box of draft, revise, re-draft, revise again. I needed to shake it up.
Why am I sharing this with you?
In case you need to shake something up.
Maybe that means writing in a new spot or going on an Artist Date* for inspiration or listening to some new music while you write or returning to your planning documents or trying a new revision strategy.
Whatever it is, try shaking something up.
Don’t get so married to what worked on a previous manuscript. No two are alike.
Just know that you have the control. You always have. And you always will.
*this is an affiliate link which means I receive a very small commission if you make a purchase
Don’t forget that this week, I am offering a $20 discount off my Revision Road Map mini-course to celebrate my book coaching anniversary.
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed while revising or unsure where to begin or are getting mired down in line edits knowing there are bigger issues lurking in your manuscript, the Revision Road Map is the tool for you.
This self-paced course will teach you how to analyze your own work as well as organize your editing process to make revisions more enjoyable and efficient.
If you need to shake up your revision process, check it out before the price returns to normal.