As we dive into National Novel Writing Month, I’m reminded that writing is a highly intuitive practice, way more of an art than a science. That said, especially in the crucible of something like NaNo, it’s easy to lose perspective, which is why going in with a plan or an outline often means the difference between floundering aimlessly, freezing up, or moving forward.
So what do you do when your “gut” tells you to take your story on a hard pivot? Or when your instincts are telling you that there’s something fundamentally wrong? What do you do when you’re convinced that your writing sucks, or that you need to take a break rather than keep pressing forward… even though you haven’t made any progress in the last year, much less the past month? Are you right – or are you fooling yourself?