The dreaded 30,000 word mark

The other day I was feeling pretty exasperated with myself. Here I sit with my book at 30,000 words and it suddenly gets hard. And I mean rock-and-a-hard-place, up-a-creek-without-a-paddle HARD.

It’s oh, so tempting to just close the file and relegate that book to the dusty recesses of my “Writing Projects” folder where other unfinished work sits. Thinking of that folder I went and opened it up and started reviewing some of those unfinished projects. I was surprised to see that all SEVEN of my unfinished projects sits right around 30,000 words.

REVELATION!

In a fit of pique I typed into google, “getting past 30,000 words” and I found this post by SG Redling. Go read it.  I love the take and the fact that it’s NOT JUST ME! This author has commiserated with many other authors who have all experienced the same difficult point.

A little more research showed me that 30,000 words is a very common place to find trouble. I think that the newness of the book has worn off, plot holes become more apparent, character arcs more challenging and then there is that voice in our heads. You know that voice, the one that says, “What were you thinking? You can’t pull this off!” or “Writing is what SMART people do. (insert derisive laughter here).”

Somehow I’ve managed to break through that 30,000 word mark before and I’ll manage it again. Simply knowing that I’m not alone in the struggle is comforting.

Emily