The other day I went to update my word-count tally and realized I hadn’t updated it in two weeks. Had it been that long?! Thinking back, yes, it had. Part of that was due to our family camping trip, but that only accounts for about a quarter to half of that time. The hard reality is I’ve lost motivation.
Now I’ve got another major obstacle to deal with: The Olympics. It’s going to be very easy to just spend the evening catching all the highlights instead of writing.
But I have been making some progress. The main problem is that I’ve begun to question my outline. I’ve entered a part of the novel that is as boring as the outline made it sound. I need to find a way to pick up the pacing, still get the important details into the novel, but skip about 30% of the next section so I can get to something more exciting more quickly. I spent some time before the camping trip reviewing my outline instead of writing, but wasn’t able to make any significant changes, so I’m instead trying to write my way through it. So far that means a slower pace.
I’m determined to finish this novel. But I have to admit that taking a break for awhile did feel good. I’ve been working on this novel for close to ten months now. Some time away may not be good, but it’s probably not bad, either.