A Quick Progress Update

Welcome to my first pure progress update! I have a lot of exciting news.

Novel Writing Progress

I’ve made significant progress on the first draft of my novel. While it’s not as far along as I’d like, I’m learning to embrace the process of creating ‘vomit drafts’—getting ideas down on paper before refining them.

One thing I’ve learned is that scenes rarely turn out to be the length I expect. I’ve broken my project into sections to keep things fresh and measure progress, but this approach hasn’t worked as planned. While it has kept things fresh, I haven’t been able to accurately measure progress. Some scenes stretch over pages, while others wrap up in a paragraph. This unpredictability means I can’t rely on the number of remaining sections to gauge how much more I have to write.

I’ve also found myself adding more scenes than I’d initially planned. Whether that’s to further develop a relationship, further develop a personality, or enhance the importance of a location, it’s proved more common than I’d have liked when making my plan. My original plan focused heavily on the plot and the protagonist’s inner conflict, but I’ve realised that giving attention to significant people and places makes the plot more compelling and helps the audience understand what truly matters to her.

Another challenge has been writing action scenes. I recently shared a meme on Instagram about how difficult it is to write fight scenes, but the same goes for dance scenes. Since my story centres on romance, friendship, and inner conflict, I can avoid overloading it with action. However, action scenes are still essential for realism, so I’m committed to improving in this area.

Other Writing Projects

As a creative exercise, I challenged myself to draft a short horror story in a week. It went well, but I am in the process of doing some edits and rewrites. I hope to send it off to some magazines soon, but I hope you enjoy it in whatever form it goes out in. It does not share the hopefulness of my novel, but it makes up for that in tenderness.

Recent Inspirations

When I’m not writing, I am most often reading. Anna Bogutskaya’s essay collection Feeding the Monster explores ‘why horror has a hold on us’. Her insights into some of my favourite stories (like Hannibal and Suspiria) have challenged me to understand why I find entertainment and inspiration in the genre. It also deepened my understanding of why I find it important to add chilling feelings to my otherwise hopeful coming-of-age story, encouraging me to embrace it. You may be wondering: which romance story needs a monster? Mine. Many more of them, too. There’s a lot we can learn through our monsters, and Bogutskaya’s book explains that and so much more!

I’ve also been inspired by the work of Ashley Poston. Her work stands out among mainstream romances for two reasons: genre mixing and emotional depth. Poston blends romance with sci-fi and the supernatural. Though she doesn’t go into great detail on the mechanics or test the limits with genre-savvy scenarios, she has executed every bit of it perfectly. Putting a couple in a unique scenario almost instantly makes you root for the pair and renders them unforgettable. I hope my love for horror stories will shine through and make my love story as memorable as Poston’s. Because her stories are romantic and surreal, one may suspect that they lack depth and realism. This is not the case at all. The protagonist always works out complex emotional flaws and manage to endure difficult things like grief. Her ability to sell her characters’ humanity and add a mature element to a genre that may not be taken seriously is something I aspire to. I really hope that, amid the romance and horror, my story will evoke real emotions.

Blog and Social Media Plans

Looking ahead, I’m planning new content for my blog and social media. I’ll be adding a unique mid-month post and upgrading my Instagram posts. I’m also considering expanding to other platforms.

I have recently started a book club with my parents. Lame, right? Wrong! It’s a lovely way to make sure you still chat to your parents when living apart, especially if you all love books. Do you want to know how people of different generations, genders, and general circumstances can view a book differently? Well, pay attention to this blog. I’ll be uploading a summary of our conversation on the previous month’s book. This month, we’re discussing ‘Penance’ by Eliza Clark, which features an unreliable narrator—sure to spark an interesting conversation.

Finally, I’m focusing more on social media. My goals include creating more reels, improving the visual quality of my posts, showing more of my personality (and face), and carefully considering expanding to other platforms. Social media isn’t easy, nor is it comfortable, but I have resolved to push through in order to attract engagement and be proud of my public image.