Winter Work & New Release

90%.

That is where I was stuck in my novel.

The character arcs all came together. The plot twists had been revealed. Now, all that needed to be done was the epic final battle and its aftermath. But this was the moment I hit writer’s block. I tried powering through it during NaNoWriMo but ended up writing under par.

Meanwhile, outside, winter had arrived here in Toronto, and with it, a seasonal change of moods—both in the weather and the mind. It was cold, stormy, and chaotic. Bone-chilling winds washed over from both sides—the Arctics in the North and the Great Lakes in the South. No amount of hot tea, mittens, or fireplace sounds could overcome the sense of bleakness.

It was on one such day that I went outside when it started to snow amid music from Carol singers. I remembered that writing was once enjoyable. I had to stop hyper-focusing on this “goal” and instead see what else was interesting to write.

And then I found it. While researching my novel, I had written a few independent short stories set in my fantasy world. Some of my best work came when I enjoyed doing them, and these brought back memories. I didn’t want to hide them away. I decided to find a place for them in a book.

I sat down for this new project, deciding to become its editor and publisher. I scavenged all these stories from older document files. I then polished them, proofread them, and formatted them. I also designed a cover page. I then published them on Amazon. Soon, Goodreads automatically picked it up, granting me an author page.

I have just realized that sometimes, just like winter can be beautiful in its own way, our path in the creative journey can pass through new possibilities as well.

The result of this—’ A Scribe of Devarka’— is out on Amazon.