Hey Space Cadets, how’s everyone doing today? I’m good, I will finish Operation Breakout today and I’m super excited about it. I’m already working on where book four will go, and I’ve some fun ideas. We’ve tentatively titled book four Maternal Vengeance. For those of you who’ve read The Human Legion Series, you’ll see the culmination of a plot thread started by author Tim C. Taylor. I’ve also submitted a short story to an anthology, as I’ve previously mentioned, and was invited to another anthology. I’ll tell you more about that as the details emerge, but I promise it’ll be soon.
Now, on to today’s World Building Wednesday topic, prioritizing your writing. What do I mean by this? Well, as creative people it’s easy to get distracted by the bright shiny idea. That next story, the next series can all pull you away from your work in progress and leave you starting millions of projects without finishing anything. I try to resist this temptation, power through it, roll over it like it was the Maginot Line in the 1930’s! Why? Because I can’t send ideas and half-finished manuscripts to my editor and I certainly can’t publish them.
My solution, stolen from other authors who I’ve chatted with and writing podcasts I’ve listened too is simple. Use your motivation for the next shiny thing to push you to finish your current work in progress. Let the boredom with the current idea motivate you to be innovate and come up with ways to reinvigorate the story for your readers. If it bores you, maybe it would bore them and you don’t want to lose your readers.
What about the rest of you out there in the Handley Trenches? How do you prioritize your works in progress? Do you write one project at a time, or are you one of those special souls who can write multiple projects simultaneously? I would love to hear from you in the comments below, so don’t be afraid to sound off!
Until next time, stay frosty and don’t forget to keep your powder dry!
JR
–> As usual, all images came from the Google’s “labeled for reuse” section or are videos used by JR Handley for use under the Fair Use Doctrine.
J.R. Handley Blog 
“I will finish Operation Breakout today and I’m super excited about it.”
*happy dance*
Multiple projects simultaneously? Of course! I don’t do linear, one-thing-at-a-time thinking. For me, it’s a good way to keep the overall “uber-arc” of our stories moving forward even if I get stuck on the current WIP. We’d have to skip around anyway, since we want to publish our novels in chronological order regardless of which series they’re placed in. (EVERYTHING interconnects; it’s been that way from the beginning, even though we’re more-or-less making it up as we go along. Planned chaos, I guess you could say. Outlining by the seats of our pants.)
At the moment (while I’m waiting for that other military sci-fi novel I’m supposed to copyedit), I’m trying once again to do something with the story fragment about one of the secondary characters from Project Brimstone (the novel we just sent off to beta readers a few days ago). The clone is working on his next (fourth and, alas, probably final — we’ll likely have to break with tradition and NOT do five books for this series) novel about Hrothgar Tebrey. But we also have “that novel” (as always) and a book my clone refers to only as “Max’s story.” And that’s just the stuff that’s in the immediate works-in-progress queue — I’m not counting Changing Magic, Seven for a Secret, or the novels with Daeren Drake as the main character.
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Glad you have a process that works for you! I NEED to work in a straight line, from A to Z.
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I think every writer should do whatever works best FOR THEM and not worry about whether they’re ‘doing it right’ according to someone else’s methods.
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I agree! That is why my set-up for this series was “this isn’t the right way, it’s just MY way.”
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I focus on one thing at a time. Yes, other ideas percolate, but if I let them distract me, nothing will get done.
If I find I’m getting bored with my current WIP, it usually means it’s time to cut what I’m working on and get to the “good” parts. No one wants to read the filler anyway.
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That is a good strategy, then circle back to write the necessary filler. Sometimes, as much as it stinks, the filler is needed to cement the bricks of the plot in place.
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More filler is one thing my beta reader always nails be on. She calls it smoother transitions.
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The hard part is finding the line between too much and just right. My struggle too.
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Distractions are definitely a problem. Even reading your use of the word ‘shiny’ makes me want to watch Firefly, haha!
Excellent post as ever.
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Thank you AND now I want to worship at the Alter of the Firefly again. Curse you Stuart!
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Haha! There’s only one cure.
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Watch it again!
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Exactly.
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Thomas Weaver describes the way I write. I’m a gestalt inquiry sort of person because, as Mr. Weaver stated, “EVERYTHING interconnects.”
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As long as you find out what work for you, then you’re on the path to success. Just remember, as you grow as a writer that may change and you have to be willing to adapt!
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Valuable info. Fortunate me I discovered your site by chance, and I’m surprised why this accident didn’t happened earlier! I bookmarked it.
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Don’t be a stranger, and we’re happy to have you in the Handley Trenches!
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