There are side-trips and diversions on every journey. Sometimes the mapped-out route is an apt summary of our goal. Other times, the careful plans are little more than a dream with no relation to our waking life.
The diversion is extra work, outside the journey. In a game, the side quests only take time. In real life, it doesn’t seem to be like that. The side quests take their own toll.
In June of last year, we split what we owned into two piles: the things which remained on our boat, and the things we moved to Nevada. Family emergencies are like that. My day job is flexible, so I could move easily.
The plan was to work from Nevada. It would be quiet. Perhaps I could rewrite Tales of the Red Ranger. I could spend more time studying beats and scene structure. Describe the Mage’s loss and frustration more clearly. Introduce the other characters more carefully.
The diversion was non-fiction writing, starting in October, 2019.
That was enough extra work that fiction stalled.
Then came the video courses. One of my titles needed technical updates.
Can I do all three at once?
Short answer: Nope.
Long answer: Perhaps I shouldn’t have tried.
The non-fiction book is into final production. I expect to start getting PDF’s shortly.
The video course is into post production. Unless there’s a problem, I think that’s done.
Now. We’re moving back to the U. S. East Coast.
So, when do I get to study beat and scene structure? I’m not sure, but it doesn’t look like I’ll be touching Tales of the Red Ranger until August at the earliest.
Are the side-trips and diversions past me? Am I on the course I originally planned? Can I really restructure The Forge into two 80K word books?
I’m learning that it won’t be easy unless I start declining the side-quests.