WIP Update: Follow the Arrows (Update #8)

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A little over four months ago, I announced that Follow the Arrows was close to the end and that I’d soon have a finished ninth novel.

Four months ago, I didn’t quite realize how delusional I was.

This has been a crazy writing experience, my friend. Perhaps my craziest to date.

I don’t know when The End is coming, but my prayer is that I can figure something out and eventually reach it.

If You Missed Past Updates, You Can Recap Here:

At This Point… What on Earth is Going On?

A whole lot of not writing, that’s for dang sure.

A lot of self-doubt mixed with not a lot of time.

The never-ending Word Search Edit for On the Flip Side.

Okay, all of that, actually.

Since the end of January when the last WIP Update went live, I’ve written a total of eight times. Not even 3,500 words.

There are only a handful of chapters left to write, and lately it seems The End is getting further out of reach.

At this point, I’ve been writing Follow the Arrows off and on since August 2024, over a year and eight months, and I shake my head every time I remember that fact.

I’m frustrated with myself because it seems that every time I get a pocket of free time to write, I don’t, or struggle when I try. Ever since I realized I need to make a major change in the book concerning how the bowling league is set up for it to be portrayed accurately, it’s like I’ve forgotten how to write.

Is this a Complaint Post or am I Actively Trying to Fix Things?

I feel like every single one of my recent WIP Updates has been full of complaints and excuses for not writing, and I’m sorry. I truly am. Because as my readers, y’all deserve better than an author giving a begrudging update about a book she doesn’t want to admit she’s struggling with.

And because I want to get out of this mess, I’m slowly but surely trying a new method to defeat this writing slump.

As I’ve discovered over the past several weeks at my new job, writing during my lunch breaks may not be as feasible as it was at my old one. Nevertheless, I just ordered a Bluetooth keyboard from Amazon that I can use to write on my phone, so now I don’t have to be tethered to a computer to write (since I am not someone who likes to write using my phone’s touchscreen keyboard). If I need to, I can step away from my desk and go write in my car. I can even write at the bowling alley while my husband’s team is taking practice shots before his league starts, which could be a gamechanger for Follow the Arrows considering my husband’s league is what inspired the book.

I wrote 256 words during lunch yesterday, my first time using the keyboard, and even though it’s not a lot of words, it’s still some words. I’m hoping I can keep this up.

Please pray that I can get back in the writing groove and finish this book once and for all.

Talk to Me, Arrowheads!

Have you ever been in a season of life where you feel like you’re falling behind on everything? How did you power through it, and what tips do you have for working toward your dreams during a season like this? Let me know in the comments!

Aim high, stay strong, and always hit your mark.

-Allyson 😀

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As an author and blogger, my goal is to teach writers that there is a way to write realistic, thought-provoking, redemptive Christian fiction that honors God while not sugarcoating the realities of the world. 

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