Like They Say, Writing Is Easy...

...just open a vein...

Well, that’s what it felt like last night as I struggled to write the last scene in my current WIP. I mean, it’s crunch time—time to tie up loose ends, bring things full circle, answer all the unanswered questions…why am I having so much trouble?? When I wrote Fit For Love, the end seemed to write itself.

I’m hoping the answer is that Stealing Amy is a better book. That the characters have more depth, that the conflicts are weightier, and that the resolutions are more emotionally satisfying. Thus more difficult to write.

But, who knows? Maybe I just suck at endings.

And maybe, I just suck, period.

Okay, sigh. Not to beat myself up here, but this whole writing thing is not as easy as it looks. For some, it takes forever to find a groove—a process that works. When I wrote Fit For Love, I edited as I went and submitted chapter by chapter to a critique group. The advantage was that I knew the book backwards and forwards, I got instant feedback on whether a plotline or character was working, and, in the end, there wasn’t much editing to do.

This time—I submitted only the first two chapters. Not sure why, exactly. Probably because as I went, I kept discovering new stuff about the characters and plot that I knew I’d have to go back and insert in previous chapters, but I was too excited about writing the story to wanna spend time editing. And, trust me. I WILL NOT PUT SOMETHING UP FOR CRITIQUE UNLESS IT’S AS PERFECT AS I THINK I CAN MAKE IT.

So, here I am with a totally unedited 400-page manuscript. The good news? I’m not sick to death from already reading it a million times. (That happened with Fit For Love—if I have to read the first three chapters one more time, I’ll throw up.) And, I’m happy to know Stealing Amy will be ready to pitch at National in July.

Now, if only I could finish that scene….hmm…anybody got a razor blade?