And I was worried about 70,000 words!!

Big update from my writing adventure.

The first draft is done! It feels a little surreal to say that after spending so much time imagining the story, from my first outline of the story idea, changing it a few times+, and occasionally wondering if I’d ever reach the end. But here we are-all I can say is YAY to me!!

The first draft has been a journey of starts, stops, surprises, and plenty of learning along the way. Some scenes came together almost exactly as I pictured them. While others took a completely different turn once I started writing, and ohhh how that can make hours of writing, deleted in a minute! There were days when the words flowed and days when a single paragraph felt like a major win, have a feeling this is just how writing goes. I’ve learned that progress doesn’t always look dramatic. Sometimes it’s a full chapter, sometimes it’s sitting down, rereading yesterday’s work, and adding a few more sentences. Those small steps have added up to a whole lot of pages.

I keep reminding myself that a first draft is allowed to be messy. There may be clunky transitions, and a few spots that will need serious attention later. That’s part of the process.

104,000 words later & This beautiful view from Papa's cabin for me to write a lot of the chapters