Taking My Time

I decided to delay the release of my current wip, Memories of the Good Thyme Inn. I had planned to release it on November 8th, but the deadline was stressing me out and my most recent writing wasn't good. As a reminder, the deadline was self-imposed. My publisher is awesome and never demands anything be done by a certain time.

It was last summer, I think, when I thought that I could complete the book by the end of 2023, so the May deadline wouldn't be a problem. Except, around November, I began feeling burnout. I also wanted to write about a different character (the Lord Hierophant) which made writing about the Good Thyme Inn characters feel like a chore sometimes. My inn gang deserves better than that. I love them. I love the Hierophant, too, but can't rush the inn's story just because someone else is demanding my attention.

One problem I encountered was consistently forgetting about the characters who aren't part of the main group later on. When I created the Good Thyme Inn's "Bad Company" it was comprised of 12 members in the year 310. When I decided to write the trilogy, I wanted to introduce the members one by one. Except, I couldn't have Shallot and Parsnips working at the inn alone. There's no way they could have handled it by themselves. So I created other characters: Onion (Shallot's sister), Chives (their cousin), and Beans (Chives's husband). I also gave Grilled a brother, Garlic. Those four characters aren't part of the main group because they either die or start working on the farm instead at some point over the course of the trilogy. And yet often, I completely neglect to mention them being there. If I were to release the book, I know they would look like afterthoughts... because they are. I created them to fill gaps for workers the inn needed. They don't deserve that, though. So, I'm going to flesh them out, give them more screen time, and maybe it'll make their deaths/moving out scenes more meaningful.

Grilled and Garlic, drawn by Claire Leslie

I hope to also make this book more beautiful. I mentioned that my writing recently hasn't been as great, and that's because I'm rushing to get the story written. It's bland. I think I've managed to hit some of the emotional notes right, but I need to get more imagery. More visuals, more sounds, more scents. Good God, this book is SUPPOSED to make you think of food and family. So, yeah, that's where I'm at now. I'm going to take a break from writing as much. I'm going to read, play video games, watch anime, and generally enjoy my life.

Parsnips, Turnip, and Shallot, drawn by Claire Leslie

I put a few beta reads on hold, but I'm going to return to those. I want to rekindle my love for other authors, too!