One of the most valuable things I have learned about writing is this: You need to know your why.
As in, why are you writing about this? Why do you want people to read it?
For Fire in the Heart, The Geography of Water, and The Last Layer of the Ocean, I have a why.
I’m still struggling to find it for the work in progress. That, I have realized, is why it has been so difficult. And why it has required considerable thought and changes. I still have hope I will find the why. Otherwise, it’s not worth bothering. Yes, some commercial authors can churn out many books a year, but they leave me as unfulfilled as a potato chip binge. There’s no real Why.
I’m looking. Stay tuned.