One Year Later: The Puzzle of Writing

I can’t believe it’s been a whole year since my last post! 🤦‍♀️

The good news is that I've been a busy writer bee, but there's no proof for you — yet. Remember my mention of The Flower Maiden project? Well, I've spent these last months taking a hard look at this novel. I've cut pages from the beginning to get into the story faster, created a deeper character arc, and added two minor characters. I also moved a pivotal scene, refined a regional accent, and worked in historically accurate phrases. Whew, right?

It's a good thing I enjoy most of this process. I see it as a puzzle — really, the puzzle of writing in general — to work toward a finished project with no reference photo, no directions. I love dreaming up plot ideas and creating believable, relatable characters with wants, hates, past trauma, and eventual resolution. Conflict is harder for me to nail down — probably because I avoid it in real life. It makes me anxious and uncomfortable. But real life includes a lot of conflict, so a believable/relatable story needs to include it. I'm also not that comfortable with writing romance. Now, it's not because I don't love to read G-rated romance or watch a good rom-com. I do! Maybe it’s because romantic experiences feel so personal to me — like I’m intruding if I write too much detail. Therefore, romance in my stories tends to fall into the "sweet romance" category.

And that's okay! The wonderful thing about writing is that we get to focus on what interests us — just as readers get to choose the stories that speak to them. The disconnect, for me, is finding my audience. I know I'm not the only reader of sweet romance and deep, introspective novels. I'm simply having trouble finding literary agents who also like this and therefore know which publishers to pitch my story to.

I have just come up for air as of this past weekend. And now my novel is off to some trusted readers for an unbiased look while I research agents — again.

So that’s where I am with The Flower Maiden — hopefully nearing the end of edits, conflict-wrangling, and letting my characters kiss without me blushing harder than they do. It’s been equal parts puzzle, therapy session, and creative marathon.

This year's hard, terrible, wonderful work has reminded me just how much goes into being a writer. It’s not just words on a page — it’s persistence, a willingness to learn, a lot of chocolate, and finding a way to laugh at my mistakes. And if you’ve ever thought, “Hey, maybe I want to be a writer too,” I’ve put together something for you.

👉 Next time, I’ll share a tongue-in-cheek outline entitled “How to Be a Fiction Writer (and Cry a Lot)”. Spoiler Alert: It involves a lot of work, tissues, and an alarming number of drafts.

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