Today I spent a good part of my morning brainstorming ideas for a new fiction series. I do this fairly regularly—after all, it’s part of my job to come up with new books our readers are going to love.
I often put it off, not because I don’t enjoy it, but because it becomes a bit consuming. It takes time, for sure, to be creative. It means I have to close my door, turn off my email, and allow myself the space to think. It also means thinking creatively, which, to be honest, there are times I just don’t want to do.
Often, it’s easier to simply deal with emails and read manuscripts than to come up with ideas of my own. It takes energy, too. I’m always surprised at how draining it is to write. I’m just sitting in a chair! How hard could it possibly be?! Yet somehow, it’s draining on so many levels.
I hope the series idea I created today makes it all the way to become printed books. But even if it doesn’t, I’ll get to come up another idea tomorrow. I love this job.
Beth Adams is the creator and editor of GUIDEPOSTS’ Home to Heather Creek fiction series.