I could do laundry, but why when there is romance tumbling around in my brain?

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

You know how it feels when have to do something important or necessary? Sometimes that thing is difficult or distasteful. Not always though. Sometimes you actually want to do that thing, but you feel nervous about it.

So, you put it off. Everything else suddenly clamors for your attention. Wash the dishes, yes! Change those sheets? It will feel so good when you climb into bed tonight.

Read that book? You deserve a little break.

And doing those other tasks seems easier. At first.

You are working hard. You are productive. But there is just that little twinge of anxiety. And the longer you avoid “the thing,” the worse the anxiety gets.

Yes. I hate to tell you, but this happens in writing, too. Sometimes, I get a little stuck in the middle of a book. Sometimes there is a scene that I know is going to be fabulous, but I’m nervous to start writing it. (Because I want so badly for it to be fabulous).

I’d love to tell you that I am disciplined, and I just push through.

And sometimes I do, but I have been known to get caught up in avoidance behaviors.

There. I said it.

But let me tell you a little secret. Sometimes when I’m avoiding the main work in progress, I will write something else. I wrote both Smoke and Shadows and Veiled In Mist when I hit a wall in my main works.

Each time, after I finished writing a fun, delightful novella, I was ready to return and finish the main project: The Lies We Tell and The Masks We Wear, respectively.

So, right now I am working on Brothers’ Knot, Book 3 in my Rebel Hearts series. I love the main character, Philippa. But she is really struggling to figure out what will bring her happiness. These two brothers are causing her some serious confusion.

And she keeps changing the course of the book, so I’ve spent a little time this last month avoiding her. And I enjoyed every minute of it.

I wrote the first draft of a historical fantasy romance. It is the prequel to a new series that I now see I must write. (Don’t worry, not yet).

I also wrote a bonus epilogue for Dear Lord Wycliffe, Book 2 of the Rebel Hearts series. This epistolary novel will be released this month. Watch for that!

But never fear. My avoidance anxiety is just about at its peak. I’m ready to return to my main work. Philippa is now ready to learn some things about life and about herself. And she will find her way to love too–very, very soon!

So, what do you do when you’re avoiding? And how long can you avoid before you force yourself to do the thing?