Today I celebrate finishing a set of scenes that were an absolute slog to get through. 9,172 words were added to my manuscript, or approximately 36 pages encompassing three chapters. These eventful pages saw a wedding, 11 new characters (not including the flash mob), and a whole lotta family drama. As hard as it was to write, those pages turned out better than I could have hoped or imagined — except I did imagine it. Funny how that works. It’s one of those weird paradoxical things that comes with being a writer.

I’m riding this hard-fought win, and one of the ways I’m doing that is by printing out a fresh copy of my manuscript. Tangible proof helps to solidify the progress. It doesn’t feel like I’m getting far when I’m adding a word at a time. But to stop and add 36 pages to the stack — pages that I dragged through — empowers me to continue on. Because if I can punch through this material and still enjoy the outcome, then there’s nothing stopping me from completing the rest of my book. I know what needs to be written. I just have to do it. And I’m more excited to keep going than ever. The finish line is in sight.

My clips aren’t wide enough! This is getting real

Sometimes I come off a scene like this and have to reorient myself before I’m ready to go onto the next. Not today. Today I’m signing off, eager to jump into writing one of the hardest scenes in the entire book. And you know what? It’s going to turn out better than I can imagine!

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