Last week, I said that if I didn’t start actually writing this story by today, you could nag me about it in the comments.
You can stand down. I’ve started writing, and no nagging was required.
I’m taking it slow right now, for a few reasons. I’m still putting the finishing touches on the outline (I’ll finish that up early next week, if everything goes according to plan), and I’m still missing one worldbuilding element that is really freaking important, so I don’t want to get too far into things before I sort that stuff out.
But the big reason is this: it always takes me a while to find my way into a story. Every single time, no matter how prepared I am, it takes at least a week or two to figure out the rhythm of a story and reach a point where I have more good writing days than bad ones. Even knowing that, it bothers me, just a little, every single time.
So this time, I’m going to take the pressure off. For the first week or two, I’m going to limit myself to short writing sessions: no more than thirty minutes at a time. I won’t make as much progress as I might hope, but that’s fine – later, when the story is moving smoothly and I know how the characters interact with each other, I’ll make up the time, and the overall story will be better for it.
Reghan Skerry 
4 responses to “Finding the Pace”
Good for you! And if you need a Beta, or an actual editor, let me know.
Thanks for the offer! It might be a little while (I’m one of those people who can’t bear to show a story to anyone until it’s been through a second draft and a polish), but I’m always on the lookout for betas. I’ll send you a note when I’m at that stage, if that’s ok.
I see things in very rough stages. I can tell you important things without getting caught up in the grammar.
I’ll think about it. At the very least, I want to have a (mostly) finished draft. I need to keep the writing and beta reads separate in my mind – if I don’t, my perfectionism gets in the way and I’ll never finish. (Speaking from experience, unfortunately.)