I'd be the first to admit I've put a lot of effort into building my career under my pen name, focusing on the genres I was exploring. But, my love of historical romance has been calling to me, with increased volume in recent months. After some time off, I'm jumping back into writing. A little over a year ago I started a new Celtic romance I found myself loving...but have since benched until I can rewrite it.
Currently, I'm working on a Roman era romance which is a lot of fun to write. I had a goal for it - which I think was unobtainable. I figured, 2500-3000 words per day, I'd have it up to 75k in no time. Real life, however, slipped my mind.
How can I truly reach those word counts without sacrificing something else? What would I give up to ensure my goals were reached and I felt successful?
Should I ignore my family? My obligations such as housework, appointments? Promotion and networking with friends? Imagine my horror as I realized not only were my goals beyond my reach, but to get them I was doing the one thing I never wanted to do. So, I sat back, did some serious thinking - and it was painful.
Knowing I wouldn't make the deadlines I set for myself, the word count, was discouraging. Took the wind out of my sails so to speak. Being honest with myself, I can admit I forgot to take the right steps. To know my limits and to push the boundaries only within the realm I could accept is a fact I ignored in the hope I reach the ending I wanted and submit to the publisher I wanted to - without realizing if I rushed myself, the work would have been mediocre at best, and probably would not have been accepted.
How did I overcome this emotionally draining challenge? I took a look at what I wanted vs what I needed.
What I needed outweighed what I wanted in the long run. I need to finish my book, need to be happy with it, need to be confident in it. Wanting to get it done before September 15 and submitted to a publisher - was a great idea, if the word count hadn't been so high. If I hadn't set myself up for the painful and crushing defeat of failure...which ultimately isn't failure.
Did I complete the project and get it in by September 15? No.
Am I happy with myself for missing that deadline? No, but I am not blaming myself, or shaming myself for not being able to do it. Instead, I'm looking at it as a learning experience. I've stepped back and decided I need to focus on what's important to me.
1. Getting a new title finished and ready for publication.
2. Finding a publisher the story and I fit with.
3. Reconnecting with the love of writing and knowing goals are the stepping stones to the dreams we hold.
As an author, there will always be a measure of panic when it comes to writing. It should not be because you've set yourself up to fail. If I have taken anything from this its simple, reaching for the stars is great...but not if you're willing to burn the very earth you stand on.
