You Can Do it! (But Should You?)

This is a little story about knowing your limitations.

As you know, I announced the awesome news on Wednesday that I just got a four-book deal with Carina Press for the rest of the Monster Haven series. Yay! I’m really excited about that and relieved to know those books will have a home. I’m also pleased that I know exactly what I’ll be doing for the next two years.

That’s only half the story, though.

You may be aware there’s also a spin-off series featuring one of the characters in the book I’m writing now. When I handed over the proposal for the rest of the Monster Haven series, I also turned in a proposal for three books in the spin-off djinn series.

The plan was to alternate Zoey’s books with the djinn books, and their plots intertwined and culminated in the finale of Zoey’s books. The Carina acquisition team didn’t say no to the second series, but they wanted to see a detailed synopsis and a first chapter of the first book before they decided. I agreed to have it ready by the end of next month, since I planned to write the novel during NaNoWrimo.

This plan of mine meant I’d turn in the completed and self-edited third Monster Haven book by the beginning of January, then have the first djinn book ready by the first of February. Back-to-back books. I could do that. Not going to be easy, but with deadlines keeping me in check, entirely doable.

The freak-out was subtle. It crept in slowly, and I didn’t recognize it until I realized I was totally useless with everything I touched. The thought of Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas interrupting what came down to a three-month long NaNoWriMo (minus the support of a real NaNoWriMo for two of those months) nearly reduced me to tears.

Two nights ago, a tiny voice whispered in my head. “What if you wait and do the djinn books after the Monster Haven books?”

I tried to brush the thought aside, but it stuck. I didn’t sleep much that night. My biggest worry was that I’d be giving up. Failing.

Wait. What? Dude. Four-book deal. How is putting off an additional three giving up? Idiot.

So, I reworked the djinn plots to fit chronologically after the Monster Haven stories and shot off an e-mail to my awesome editor. To my surprise, she was totally on board with the switch, and even liked the new spin a little more than the original concept.

When I approached my husband with the idea that first night I thought about it, I expected him to give me a pep talk on not giving up. You can do this! Don’t compromise! Wrong. He was right there with me. He thought it was a great idea.

So. I’m my own worst enemy. I have huge ideas and sometimes no clear vision of my own limitations. But I got there in the end. I didn’t give up. I just redistributed.

Could I have pulled off the double-series maneuver? Yes. I’m still sure I could have done it. I was the only one asking myself to do it, though. I would have missed a lot of real life going on around me during all my favorite holidays, but yeah. I totally could do it.

But sometimes we have to re-examine our goals and ask if we should. It’s important to believe in yourself, but it’s equally important to be able to tell yourself no.

My djinn will wait a little bit longer. When I finally get to her, she’ll be awesome.