Overcoming Writing Blocks: My AHA Moment

A couple of months ago I wrote a blog about finding motivation as a writer. You might remember it. You might not. Either way, it really has no bearing on this post. Well, unless you consider the kindness that I felt when you commented. Your encouragement is what truly keeps me going.

With that said, it did take me a minute to get moving. And by minute, I mean a couple of months. It was the first time in my writing career that I stepped away and gave myself a full break. Usually, I force myself to write, no matter what it is. This time, I stepped away from my manuscripts and focused on other things.

Needless to say, it helped.

Tremendously.

Which brings me to this post…

and my

AHA!

moment.

So remember that BIG THING I’ve been alluding to. You know. The one that’s coming in Coyote Ridge? It’s BIG, y’all. I mean, epically ginormous.

Anyway.

So that Aha! moment I had wasn’t exactly Aha! and more Ahhhhhhaaaaaaa. In fact, I’ve spent the last few months pondering over and over and over again how to write this one BIG THING. The issue isn’t what it is but rather how I deliver it to you. And when.

So, if you’re a fan of my Brantley Walker: Off the Books series, you know that something is coming. Or at least you know that I’ve told you it is. My issue came when I thought by delivering this BIG THING that I would have to end the series.

I don’t want to end the series. If I have my way, I will never end the series.

⇧ Don’t hold me to that because you know things change. ⇧

Anyway.

When I first started writing, I was a pantser, meaning I would sit down with my characters and my keyboard and wing it. I usually had some idea of where the story was going, so that helped. As my career progressed and the fact my books/series overlap in so many areas, I shifted more to a plantser (the unofficial love child of a plotter and a pantser). But then, as I continued to write more and more books, I realized that outlining made writing so much easier. These days, and especially with the Brantley Walker: Off the Books series because of the ongoing timeline, I usually spend several days mapping out the book and sometimes the next one since the personal storylines continue through the series.

But what happens when you get stuck in that outline?

That’s what I did. I got stuck.

No matter how I looked at it, it was telling me the same thing: end the series. I kept going around and around, trying to figure out what made the most sense. The more I thought about it, the more I dug myself deeper and deeper until the story no longer made any sense to me. In turn, I got frustrated and threw my hands up.

That was until last Thursday.

All of a sudden, I got clarity on how to make it work and I knew exactly what direction to go.

So what was my issue? Well, to put it simply, I was overthinking it.

LOL

Figures, right?

The good news is, I’m back to writing Missing Pieces, the next in the Brantley Walker series.

And that BIG THING I mentioned… it’s still on.

So stay tuned.

Oh, and thank you SO much for all your support. It really does help push me forward.

Tuesday

January 6, 2026

2:42 am

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3 Responses

Gale M Curran says:

January 7, 2025 at 2:24 pm

Can’t wait for more Bentley!!! I love this series. Sooo glad you’re back at it.

Reply
Shirley Long says:

January 7, 2025 at 8:52 pm

I’ve never doubted for a second that you’d figure it all out. I have complete faith in you to keep Off the Books going. Or end the series. Whichever works for you will be good with me. Of course, I DO NOT WANT THE SERIES TO END!! But you’ve never let me down & I know you’ll figure it all out.

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Elizabeth Gray says:

January 13, 2025 at 5:39 pm

So glad. I was just telling my sister we needed more Brantley Walker in the world.

Reply