On the heels of my novel revision, I’ve been thinking and thinking about a new project. I’ve had the idea for a few months, and have some notes here and there. Many of them conflict with one another, as I’m figuring out who’s who and

what’s going to happen. After finishing my first project, committing some of this more definitively to paper hadn’t made the to-do list, which was already so full of house, family, and work obligations.

 

This last week, though, it was finally my turn to submit to my writers’ group again. Not having feedback from my agent yet, I didn’t want to send in chapters from my revision. I considered digging up something I wrote five years ago for another writers’ group, or even starting something totally new, just for fun. But I knew the old piece was unfinished—I’d never incorporated the notes I got on it. And my brain wasn’t up to the task of creating something new out of thin air.

 

With limited time to submit my pages (I might have procrastinated just a little . . .), eventually it was time to sit down and pull my thoughts together.

 

And thank goodness I did. I don’t have many pages, but I wrote more than I expected in a short time and found that I’m really enjoying an idea I thought might have already gone stale.

 

A writers’ group is invaluable for so many reasons—encouragement, honest critique, networking, the opportunity to improve your editing skills, accountability. This week, mine gave me the kick I needed to start the next thing.