I’ve been writing books for almost twenty years. (Side note: holy crap.) I’ve published 10, written 14, and have 2 lingering in half-finished first-draftdom. You could say I’ve learned I’ve learned a thing or two about the writing process in that time.

I’ve given numerous presentations to aspiring authors and young adults, I’ve brainstormed and cried and vented with writing friends, and I’ve beamed when readers compliment my writing.

So you’d THINK books would just flow out of me, right?

Ha.

In case you didn’t hear the sarcasm in that, I’ll say it again.

HA!

As any writer will tell you, finishing one or five or twenty books doesn’t make the process easier. It makes PARTS of it easier, sure, but the self-doubt, frustration, and shiny squirrels never go away. There’s still always a point when you question why you ever thought anyone would want to read your brain vomit — for me that’s two-thirds of the way through the first draft, then again while editing — and it can be really hard to move past that point.

So what do you do?

I’ve been working on my latest novel, It’s Always Been You, for what feels like eons. I was midway through the first draft when I took my much-needed sabbatical in 2023, went back to it in the spring 2025, and have been revising since fall 2025.

*checks calendar*

Friends, I am DEEP in the chasm of self-doubt. My agent has given me spectacular advice on how to turn my domestic suspense into an honest-to-goodness thriller, but there’s just SO MUCH to do. Recently, I was whining about this to my husband and he had the AUDACITY to throw my own advice back in my face:

“What do you always tell people about eating the elephant? Take it one bite at a time.”

My smarty-pants husband

Like I said, THE AUDACITY.

But of course he’s right.

I understand what needs to change, and I’m fairly confident I have the skills to do it, but my brain keeps focusing on how much this story has changed since my initial baby suspense idea and I start to panic, when what I need to do is start small. Break down the big scary task into individual steps. Don’t worry about the end result.

So that’s what I did. I simplified my feedback down to a handful of basic ideas:

›› X is no longer an antagonist
›› cut the parents from the opening chapter
›› introduce Y in chapter one, instead of later in the book
›› cut adorable opening scene and reduce to two sentences

The good thing is, the second half of the book will remain largely intact. I’m learning that with thrillers, BIG things need to happen immediately. Like in the first chapter. My draft has the required tension in the second half — I just need to up the stakes from page one. Which is why the adorable opening scene had to go.

*mourns killed darlings*

So many killed darlings. I always save the scenes I cut and I swear I have enough material for another book. I’ve completely rewritten the opening chapter three times and I think it’s almost where it needs to be. After that, the rest should fall into place.

And I’ll keep telling myself that until it’s done.