I’ve been working on a sequel to my last novel, Darkness, for what feels like an eternity. In the first writing there were three chapters that just didn’t ring true. I poked at them. I walked away from them. I scrapped them and tried to plug in new chapters there. Finally, I went back to the beginning.

Those three chapters were always hovering in the back of my mind, though. Whispering icky little doubts and plot blocks.

Then, I started running in my new neighborhood. I didn’t go to the familiar trails, I found new ones. And that little creative voice whispered, “what if?”

What if?

Normally, those two words are the voice of anxiety: what if the sky falls? What if cancer returns? What if, what if, what if, until I’m ready to scream.

Not this one.

What if my main character really just throws all convention out the damn window and kicks ass and takes names and behaves in a sort of vigilante/anarchist kind of way?

Hm. Interesting. For someone who always writes that her witches are just gifted women born with something “extra,” how did I overlook that personality aspect? Plus, I wholeheartedly embrace the idea that “well behaved women seldom make history” (thank you, Laurel Ulrich) and realized that this is what Sirena had been trying to convey all along. Yes, I have long meetings with my characters. Sometimes, they even let me tell their story. 😉

The moral of this slightly nutty story is change. Do something different. Shake up the routine. Find the new and see where it takes your creativity. You don’t have to take up skydiving (unless you want to, obviously) to tap into some other thoughts, emotions, and ideas. Sometimes, it is as easy as trail running a cove instead of a mountain.

Happy writing, and blessings to you all!