Hey everyone! Long time no see. If you have been following this blog, you’ll notice that last Saturday, I did not post a writing update and there was a big reason for that. I hit a HUGE block when it came to one chapter of my story. I oscillated between two different versions of the chapters, writing each one several times and growing more and more unsatisfied with each draft.

As you may know, I carefully outlined my novel at the beginning of this year and am doing my best to adhere to that outline. There are specific pieces of information that I need to have in each chapter. One of my biggest struggles is to make everything feel organic. I don’t want certain parts to feel shoehorned in. I also have a strict timeline I need to follow in this first act, which doesn’t give me much wiggle room.

So for the majority of last week, I struggled with this chapter. But eventually, I decided that neither scenario was working and that I needed a different approach. So I made some minor alterations and although the chapter is still not great, it is done for now and will be revised when I take another pass at Act 1.

Part of the reason I had such a difficult time writing was because of my mental health. I have talked about this in several posts, but I am going through a rough time in my personal life which sometimes makes it difficult to write. However, my spirts turned around at the end of the week and I am in a much better place.

Earlier this morning, I wrote the opening chunk of the next chapter and feel quite good about. I should be able to finish this chapter in the next two or three days. I am hoping that my positive outlook on things remains so I can continue to be industries with my writing.

I hope everyone had a great first week of March. Please let me know how your writing is going in the comments section below.

Until next time, kill your darlings, slay your dragons, and keep writing.