First of all, Happy Fourth of July everyone. I hope your day is filled with family, friends, food, and fireworks. (Just realized I used four ‘f’ words. Wasn’t intentional.) It will be a rather quiet day for my husband and me, but I will keep in mind those brave men and women who fought for our freedom 139 years ago.
This week I’ve been struggling with a short story I’m working on. Actually, I’ve been struggling with it for a while and I need to get it done.
What amazes me about working on this story is that the last one I wrote came together so easily. I had so much fun with Operation Santa, and the story simply flowed. I even got a contract for the story to be included in Soul Mate’s Christmas Anthology. Made the story even more fun. Happy dance. Yesterday as I worked on edits for Operation Santa, I still giggled over parts, and was happy with how the story came together.
Maybe that’s why this next one is so hard – the last was so easy. I was telling a writer friend about the new story and she said it sounded like a great idea, but I feel like I’m pulling teeth or strangling an alligator as I slog through it. I have to get the darn thing done in less than a month. Yikes.
Has anyone had a problem like this? What did you do to resolve it?
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Happy Independence Day!
Definitely been there, for a bunch of different reasons. Sometimes it was burnout. I had a book that was a huge struggle, but it was on deadline, and I got it done and turned in and then the publisher didn’t get to revisions for months, which let my brain rest. When we did the rewrites, I could so clearly see what needed to be done, and the writing was effortless.
Sometimes it wasn’t the right story. I started one for an anthology and it was talky and thinky and boring. It didn’t use my strengths of action and dialogue. I chose a completely different story to write, and it was effortless. (Not that that means it doesn’t need work; it always needs work. 🙂 )
Sometimes there’s something wrong with the story. A motivation not strong enough, a conflict not fleshed out, emotions weak or POV too shallow. Going back to the beginning and reading through often helps me break through the bog and get it moving again. CE Murphy talks about getting bogged down, going back to find where she went wrong, and making it all right again and making it easier to continue.
Whatever the reason it’s a struggle, I’ve found the best thing to do is plow through. Just force yourself to keep going, trying different things to figure out *why* it’s a slog. At some point, you get to the other side and race to the finish. 🙂 Good luck!
Thanks, Natalie. I appreciate your comments. Now to get to work on it!