_____ Is Hard

Recently, I finished my first read-through of Brontide and started my first round of content (big picture) edits.

Today, I hit the “I can’t do this” wall.

The problems feel overwhelming. I’m not sure if any of my ideas of how to fix them are any good. At my current speed, it seems like I’ll be in the editing stage forever.

I wish that I could be playing around with the new story idea floating around in my head. I wish I could be drafting an idea I’ve had for a long time. I wish I wasn’t editing. Editing is hard.

But brainstorming is hard.

Plotting is hard.

Drafting is hard.

________ is hard.

It’s easy for me to hear the phrase “Writing is hard,” nod along, and just think that it’s talking about the drafting phrase. Writer’s block and lack of inspiration are real problems.

But all of writing is hard. Every part of writing has its ups and downs. There are days when everything is going perfectly, inspiration is abundant, you know exactly what to do. And there are days where you’re staring at a blank computer screen or sheet of paper, words are nonexistent, and you’re wondering how do you even do this writing thing?

For me, writing is always hardest shortly after I first begin a new phase. Once I get over the initial excitement of starting a new idea, a second draft, etc., I typically hit a “How do I do this?” wall. It’s overwhelming when trying to figure out where to begin, whether that’s forming a story skeleton, putting down the first sentence, or staring at a list of edits.

So I’m reminding myself that it’s okay for editing to be overwhelming right now. It’s okay for it to be going slow. I’ll work through the list of green (I didn’t use a red pen) ink eventually. And the grass isn’t necessarily greener on the other side. Every stage of writing has its own challenges. I’m just having to work through the editing challenges right now.

Writing is hard. But just because it’s hard doesn’t mean that I’m doing it wrong, or that it isn’t worth it. I’m going to keep editing, keep writing. Even when it’s hard.