Writer life – Cannons to Cruising

Winner, Winner!

I did it! I completed NaNoWriMo this year and wrote 50,000 words during the month of November. Were they amazing? No. Were they passable? Also no. Were they completed? Yes.

That’s the funny thing about writing. I don’t always enjoy it, it’s like pulling teeth some days. But I always enjoy having written. Something about delayed gratification, I guess. I am well on my way to finishing my 3^rd book just this year, and that is way more than I ever expected at the beginning of 2023. Ending the year by winning NaNo is the cherry on top, and I’m trying to ride the momentum train as long as I can. I also got a t-shirt because I am normally terrible at celebrating accomplishments. Conor was like, “Are you excited you’re done?” and I replied, “Well, I still have 30k left to write before the draft is done, so kind of?” I’m a pro at moving the goalposts.

I’ve never written a thriller before, so I knew this book was going to be challenging. Since NaNo ended, I’ve added another 12,000 words to the draft, with about 20,000 words left before the rough draft is finished. Holding a thriller plot in my hands is like scooping up dry sand at the beach. I’m barely hanging on and trying not to lose the pieces escaping through my fingers. If at the end I haven’t lost too much of it, I’ll consider the rough draft to be a success.

This project has three 1^st-person POV, each with a different/distinct voice, everyone has a secret, everyone in the story must have motive for the crime committed, everyone knows different things at different times and I have to reveal it all at the correct pacing for the genre. There is a past mystery to solve, and a current timeline I’m also working with. The two need to tie together. Oh, and each character needs a complete and satisfying story arc.

There are 76 tabs open in my brain at any given time. Christmas. Celebrations. Correspondence. Family. Gifts. A 6-year-old’s unicorn birthday party to plan.

So yes, I bought a t-shirt.

Love,

Taylor

Aspirational, Insane, or Both?

I had a vision for how the summer was going to go—leisurely beach days with the kids, parks, hiking, visits to Seattle, drinks on the back porch, yoga…somewhere in there I was going to start pre-writing my next book. I wanted to take my time with this one and get it right, maybe start it in the fall when the kids go back to school, edit over the holidays, pitch it in January.

Turns out, that was just a bunch of excuses not to start because I was afraid.

The PNWA Writer’s Conference is coming up at the end of September, and I’m attempting the impossible—planning, drafting, editing, and pitching a project within a 3.5-month period. This is insane, I’m well aware. I’ve never written an entire book on such a short timeline, but when I found out there would be a live agent pitch even there, I had to try.

I could submit my two other completed books, Hedge Dancer, or Catch Me When I Fly, but of course I need to do this the hard way. Here’s the thing—the concept for this book got me really really close to landing an agent about six years ago. The first iteration straddled the line between YA and Adult, so I yanked it apart, rewrote it, and aged it up to Adult to pitch it again. Close a second time, but still a no.

I put it aside and focused on other projects. I’ve written four books since then, but this one has always been in the back of my mind. The story I needed to tell but I was too afraid to try again, because to do it right I needed to burn it down to the ground. The only part that’s the same in the book this time around is the concept, which is about a girl and her disabled older sister. The rest is completely fresh, and it’s actually shaping into something I’m really proud of.

My draft is 26,000 words so far, which is a little over 1/3 of the way. I need to write 1,000 words every morning to stay on track to finish in time. The draft will be done by end of August, I’ll edit over two weeks in September, then work on my pitch materials right before the conference. When I make the deadline, I’ll have written and pitched two entire books this year, which is pretty cool.

This book, What I Would Do for You, is lucky #7, and by doing the hard choice, maybe it’s the key to the greatest reward. No matter what happens in September, I’m confident that pulling the trigger on this book is the right call. Currently running on coffee and ice cream (yes, at 9am. Don’t judge me), procrastinating on my draft to write this rambling 500-word post, and reminding myself I can do hard things. 9 more weeks and it will be done!

Love,

Taylor

Cultivating Strength

I’m currently being battered in the query trenches. I’ve sent 32 queries, had three requests for more material, am waiting for 6 more responses, and been rejected by the rest. These are low numbers compared to my previous system of throwing out 80+queries per book and seeing what sticks, but the punches are hitting harder this time. I am tired.

Odds of landing an agent are low, which I talked about in this previous post, but it also feels like everything is a dumpster fire. Writer Twitter is in a meltdown right now. There have been reports of literary agencies mistreating their clients, even dropping writers via email while their books are out on submission. Harper Collins workers were on a months-long strike. There is a screenwriters strike happening as I type this. If I hadn’t started down this path so many years ago, would I look at this industry right now and think, yeah, I should do this…?

Truth is, I just really really really love books. And deep down, I know I was always meant to be a writer. If I’m feeling battered but have no plans to walk away, it just means I need to get stronger.

My mental fortitude is almost inseparable from my physicality. If I feel strong, I am strong. A lot of this message ties back to athletic identity and pressure cultivating my self-worth from a young age, and it probably isn’t the best way of handling the emotional turmoil of the writing world, but I’m doing what I can. A person’s body is not their worth, OBVIOUSLY. I’m just referring to my own coping mechanisms when I’m feeling fragile. Out of my control: the market, an agent’s client load, an editor’s pre-existing bad mood the morning my book crosses their desk. Within my control: how much weight I can squat.

Consequently, I’ve been upping my workouts while pitching this book, and that progress is helping me through this career stagnancy. My burning muscles remind me that I can do hard things. I am strong enough to keep going.

Love,

Taylor

Book #6

I started a new book project this week. If anyone else is keeping track, this is will be my 6^th book. Every time I finish a novel, I think that will be the last one, convinced that there are no more stories inside me. Then, inevitably, an idea starts to take hold. With Cloaked, it was the opening scene. With Sonder Village, it was the setting. With Hedge Dancer (the book I’m pitching now), it was an effervescent main character who had to be shared with the world.

I was very afraid this past year that I really was out of stories. Usually, my brain needs a 6 month break before notes, bullet points, and quotes start finding their way to scrap paper. I finished Hedge Dancer in September, and come February, there were still crickets. All spring I waited, amid the moving chaos, for something real to take hold. My mind and my body were still whispering ‘rest’, and for once, instead of trying to do it all, I listened.

So much of writer advice is “Butt in chair!” “Those words won’t write themselves!” “Habit over waiting for inspiration to strike!” A lot of times it is true, and this advice pushed me to complete five novels. But I had drifted too far from myself, and I needed to get back to me before I could create imaginary people with the love and depth they deserve. I’m finally reading more, devouring books like I used to when I was a teenager. I’m falling into more frequent posting on here without it feeling like a chore. My consistent workouts are helping me so much mentally. I feel surrounded and supported by family and loved ones.

The craving to put pen to paper started two weeks ago, but I forced myself to wait. My wonderful, fabulous sister got married last week and I needed to focus all my energy on her special day. Emotions from that day left me on such a high that I just had to start right after.

I usually write adult fiction, so this urge to write a YA novel took me by surprise. I will update on the drafting process in the coming months. I hope I can pull this off.

Love,

Taylor