Sometimes it's Easier

I can't remember the last time I wrote a non-IWSG post! (I don't write the Jordan Takes Over ones, he does...duh...). Oh wait, let me check...it was January! I just have not been all that motivated to write blog posts lately. I don't know what it is. Maybe because the writing has been slow going, or maybe I just can't come up with ideas. Or I'm just tired all the time. But I do really want to get back into it, so, this is a start!

I've been on vacation for over a week now and still don't go back to work until Wednesday. It has been AWESOME. I love a good staycation, where I just get to relax and read and write and watch TV and (sometimes) clean/organize my apartment like I've been wanting to for months. Somehow, though, I never get quite as much done as I planned. But it is still nice to not be at work!

As for the reading, I'm trying to catch up with my goal. I've only got one more Harry Potter book to reread, and I'm still reading A Dance with Dragons, and have been since May (I think)...why exactly do I always choose the largest books to read?????? I've been trying to read more blogger buddy books, which has been going a bit better...I've read 5 now and still have plenty more on my Kindle to read. My problem is making myself write reviews...I just really think I'm bad at it! I still have to pick some books to read for Banned Books Week, too...the struggle continues.

Anyway! What I really wanted to talk about is writing! Which has actually been happening! Ok, I won't deny the fact that I had hoped for some mega writing spree where I could finally finish the third draft of Uneven Lines over this vacation. But I didn't honestly think that would happen. But there has been actual progress!

I have to admit I did procrastinate for a few days before really diving into the writing/editing. But that's what you're supposed to do on a vacation, right? Have some fun? But at a certain point I knew it was time to crack down or this would just be another wasted vacation, and I couldn't have that. I've had way too many of those.

First I had to get through Chapter 17, which I'd been avoiding for a while. Not even sure why. There was a lot of rewriting to do and I really had to dive into a character's backstory. It had always been a bit vague in the first two drafts so I added a lot more to have it make sense. It took a few days, but finally the chapter was done! I had reached the promised land!

Why? Well, because Chapter 18 is probably my favorite chapter. The whole chapter is pretty intense and there's a twist at the end. Plus, as I said in this Instagram post, this is the chapter where I take Jordan's already tiny heart, rip it out, and stomp on it repeatedly. WHY IS TORTURING CHARACTERS SO FUN? I don't know, but this chapter has some of my favorite lines in the whole book, so maybe sometimes the writing is better when the characters are miserable. Who knows?

Long story short (this post has turned out way longer than I intended...), a chapter usually takes me weeks, even months to rewrite. But I got Chapter 18 done in less than 24 hours. And that was with sleeping and eating and watching TV. It probably only took me 5 or 6 hours overall. I'd say a good 2/3 of it was completely rewritten, and I added 3 pages.

I don't even know how that happened but I would like that magic to stick around for the rest of the book. Will it, though? Probably not. But maybe things will be just a little easier from here on out.