I haven’t exactly been hitting my goal of 5,000 words a week on The Broken. Not by a long way.

But it’s mostly okay – I’m happy with what I’ve done so far. Do I wish I was writing more? Of course. But given that I’m balancing a full-time job, mental health issues, and writing for four different blogs on at least a semi-regular basis, finding time to write my second novel is a little difficult at times.

It’s funny, how the creative process works. For long periods of time, I won’t write anything, or a few words here or there, or maybe I’ll just sit down to write and end up browsing Reddit for hours instead … the point being, I don’t write.

At other times, I write thousands of words in a day.

My most recent stint got something like 3,000 words down in one go, finishing two chapters and a song. It was heady, a kind of glorious success that only comes every once in a while, or maybe when you write the final words of a book. It was good.

That was two weeks ago.

It’s particularly difficult to resume this time, because in this instance I stopped in the middle of an intense scene, and I find it challenging to reignite the passion that was going on at the time. Some scenes can be written any time, in any frame of mind; others really do need a mood.

I don’t always write, but when I do …

I used to think this was a failing on my part. When I wrote 22 Scars, I got the majority of the prose down in about three months. I just wrote, and wrote, and wrote. And not being able to do that this time around, at first it felt like I wasn’t ready. Like I needed to wait for that period of inspiration.

But the thing is, I’ve written enough to know that writing doesn’t take inspiration; it takes dedication, and perspiration, and quite a few other -ation words. It takes time and commitment to simply sit down and write. And sometimes, I just don’t have the time for that.

Sometime this week, I intend to return to The Broken and finish the chapter I’m in right now. I still have three more blog posts to write, but I’ll try to fit it in somehow. And if I don’t, I’ve decided not to worry about it.

I’ll get it done when I get it done.