It’s a tale as old as time: writer has a dream about a brilliant story idea, but chooses to go back to sleep because, “I’ll write it down when I wake up.” Then, we don’t remember anything about said story idea other than some random “vibes”. I’ve learned that lesson the hard way. There is nothing worse than waking up, knowing you had a great idea, only to remember none of it.
So, I now do one of two things (usually): I either reach for my phone and leave a short voice memo or I text myself.
Sometimes, I know exactly what I’m talking about when I wake up and look at the messages. Other times…it’s gibberish. But a few weeks ago, I woke up with this great title in my head (and if you know me, titles are sometimes super tricky lol) for a story that came to me in a dream. At first, I thought I’d just text the title to myself, and figure the rest out in the morning. Only, my brain had other ideas. I couldn’t get the idea out of my head, and something told me I wouldn’t be falling back to sleep until I got it all out of me. So, I crawled out of bed, grabbed a notebook, and started writing down the premise and hook and random ideas, until next thing I knew, I had everything I needed to make an outline. But the outline could wait till morning.
A few hours later, I woke up and went right for my notebook. I sat down to type up a loose outline, and of course share my idea with my romance writer’s group because I needed to know it was a good idea lol Everyone loved it, and even though I have plenty of other stories drafted that I could’ve continued revising, I knew I wanted to work on this story. I gave myself a few days to let it stew in my thoughts. Fluffed my outline up more, and then 2 days before March started, I sat down and started to write. Oh, how the words flowed, and while I wasn’t sure what my expectations were for how long I thought it would take me to draft, I soon came up with a game plan that sounded totally bonkers, but it also made a lot of sense.
Here’s what I did to draft my story in 18 days (over the course of 20 days):
On the first day, I wrote a chapter during the day from the FMC’s POV (since this is a dual POV story) and once my kids went to bed, I drafted a chapter from the MMC’s POV. The next day, I did the same thing, and thought, “I bet I could draft this pretty quickly if I dedicated myself to drafting a chapter for both POVs every week-day.”
I continued drafting a chapter during the day and another at night (sometimes I had to finish the night chapter in the morning because I like sleep lol).
I gave myself a break on the weekends, because there was no way my kids were going to let me write all day. I try to focus on family stuff on the weekends, but if I was in the mood to write once the kids were down, I didn’t stop myself!
I didn’t write the entire chapter in one sitting. I followed a sort of watered down Pomodoro method (highly recommend giving this a try, especially if you have ADHD like me, or just have problems focusing) where I would write, then focus on some sort of house related chore or making food or…watching Severance (It’s such a great show. If you haven’t watched it, do yourself a favor and start it! It’s on Apple TV, and while you’re over there, if you’re strange and haven’t watched Ted Lasso, add that to your list, too!) Then I’d sit down and write some more until it was time to pick my kids up from school.
If I couldn’t write, because of appointments or whatever reason, I’d leave myself a voice memo or note under where I left off, with a general idea of what I wanted to happen next. That way I wouldn’t be stuck trying to figure out what earlier me was thinking in the off-chance my characters had wandered away from my outline, like they often do.
And lastly, I gave myself grace. This is a first draft, so it WILL need work, like all first drafts. Seriously. If you try to tell my your first draft needs zero help, I will call you a liar to your face, and not believe you. Instead of going back when I knew I’d need to change something, I made a note for future me to deal with. I didn’t worry about perfect grammar or punctuation, so there will be an abundance of em-dashes, comma splices, etc. The goal was to keep moving forward, because the job of a first draft is just to exist.
I also want to acknowledging how privileged I am to be able to spend my days writing. It’s not something I’ve always had the ability to do because of work and kids and…life. But at this period of time, I’m lucky enough to be home all day, while my kids are in school, and if it wasn’t for that fact, this routine of mine wouldn’t have been possible. My husband is also currently overseas, so this is a great distraction, and outside of a few random shows, I don’t watch much TV (almost never at night…it’s just not my thing. I’d rather read or write, but that doesn’t mean I don’t ever watch it. Sometimes I need to kick back with a good/classic show.) I also don’t see this as something sustainable, and trying to do it multiple times in a row would absolutely lead me to burning out.
It also helps that I had a very clear image of what I wanted this story to be. I knew my character’s wounds and their goals. I knew little details and big details, and how I wanted to develop their arcs. This story reminded me of why I love writing and how fun it can be. Although all my stories have detailed outlines, sometimes the words still don’t flow or connect like I need them to, so this was such a gift.
I’ll share more details about it eventually, but for now, here’s what I’m willing to share:
It’s a strangers to annoyed acquaintances to lovers story with a hint of fake dating, a library, and a little corporate espionage (ish lol). It’s literally the funnest story I’ve ever written.
Now it’s time for my new monthly feature: DINOSAURS!
Because we don’t discuss dinosaurs enough as adults, and we should.
This month, I’m highlighting the Pachycephalosaurus!
One really cool fact about the Pachycephalosaurus is that scientists now think that the Stygimoloch (my favorite dinosaur) is just a younger version of it!
And since I’m sure it’s been a while since anyone asked you what your favorite dinosaur is, leave a comment letting me know! Maybe I’ll feature it next month!
Last but not least, let’s talk about Audiobooks!
I’m sure I’m not the only person who wants to read more books, but finds themselves not having the time or patience to sit and read. Enter: audiobooks. You can clean or drive or wander around Costco while still getting your reading in! It’s my favorite form of reading over the last couple of years, and I highly encourage you to give them a try if you haven’t.
And if you’re looking for a place that’s not Audible to get your audiobooks, here are a couple of suggestions:
The Libby App acts like an extension of your library. All you have to do is connect your library card to it, and a huge catalog of audiobooks, ebooks, and even magazines can be accessed from your mobile device. Best of all…it’s free and supports your local libraries, which could use all the love and support right now!
Hoopla is similar to Libby, and while I haven’t been able to use it because my Library isn’t currently connected to it, I know many others who have used it to listen to audiobooks, read books and magazines, and even watch movies! And just like Libby, it’s free and supports your local libraries!
And finally, Libro.fm. This is a great alternative to Audible that gives you access to all the audiobooks you could ever want! It works just like Audible, where you sign up for a monthly subscription. There’s a one credit option that gives you one book a month for only $15! And they’re always having promotions for new subscribers where you can get free credits (I think there’s one going right now). The best part about them though, is that your subscription goes towards helping a local indie bookstore of your choice! So not only are you getting to listen to your favorite stories, hands free, you get to support a local business!
*These are not affiliate links. I make no commission off of them.
This was probably a bit of a hot mess, but that’s how my brain works. I’d love to chat with anyone about my drafting process, not just this book (I’ve drafted many books in a month’s time and feel I have a solid routine for making that happen). Next time you hear from me, you can look forward to a glimpse into my querying numbers—because I’ve been asked by a lot of people to go over them—more dinosaurs, and some other randomly fun stuff.
Thanks for sticking around!
First let me say what! 🤯🤯🤯 mind blown!
I plan on drafting my next WIP after my kids spring break and maybe this is what I'll do. This is awesome!