The End of the Slump

I have been in a writing slump. I have great excuses, ones which nobody can argue with. I have an online business and this is the busiest, craziest time of the year. I also have seven children and I babysit a fussy, demanding baby. I also am the Mia maid advisor in our ward and my husband and I have been called to be pioneer trek committee chairmen. I am, frankly, a very busy person.

An article in the January issue of Writer's Digest made me realize that, as busy as I am, any excuse to not write is just that--an excuse. The article is an interview with author Harlan Corben. He says in the article that he accepts no excuses. He says, "You just have to put those excuses away. You have a choice: you can either hate yourself, or you can write." He is right.

That was the push I needed to get back to my novel. The same Writers Digest issue has all kinds of great helps for novel writers, including various systems for outlining and writing a great first chapter. I am happy to report that I've revisited my project and am getting up earlier to give myself time to work on it. I've re-worked my outline--really completed it for the first time--and I find I spend more time thinking about my book, from plot twists to character development. I am getting excited about it again, which is wonderful!

If you need a kick in the pants to get you back on track to writing your novel, you might check out the January issue of Writer's Digest. It really helped me. I don't get any goodies from them for saying this, either.