Using Ritual to Rewrite Your Novel (week four: middles aren't sexy)

be Deborah Globus

The following are a series of Facebook posts detailing the process and journey of rewriting my Beloved Story.  ​

My kids seem to think I'm a badass. These were my birthday gifts back in February. That's Carol, from The Walking Dead who is by far the baddest badass on the show to date. The plaque is from my daughter and says,

"She slept with wolves without fear for the wolves knew a lion was among them."

And all this badass-ery is good because entering "weekend" 4 of the process, and I'm entering the middle of the rewrite process. 

OK, the *start* of the middle but still the middle.

And middles are not sexy.

There's no rush of completion in the middle. There's not the joyful energy of beginning (or beginning again.) The Likes from that first week are dwindling, my cheerleaders quieter now. No one's writing sonnets (or very many blog posts even) about the middle.

Yes, I am entering the middle, or the slog as I call it, and it's not sexy. Just necessary.

And just the time that one needs to find her inner badass in order to make it through. ‪#‎WritersLife ‪#‎MaggieAndChristian ‪#‎MiddlesAreNOTsexy ‪#‎BadAss‪#‎LetsDoThis

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This blessing is one of my favorites from the book To Bless the Space Between Us
by John O'Donohue the Irish poet-priest.
​Making it into a video makes it perfect for blessing online groups and virtual launches.

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No, middles aren't sexy. But what are you gonna do?
Pages done: 0.
Cool video made: 1
Apparently I'm gonna make a video. Tomorrow's another day.  ‪#‎WritersLife‪#‎MaggieAndChristian ‪#‎OhWell

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Using all my supports today: candle, music, timer.

And the Internet has decided it will not be working this morning so distractions will be kept to a minimum.

Thanks, Universe.
‪#‎WritersLife ‪#‎Rituals ‪#‎RitualsForWriters ‪#‎MiddlesAreNotSexy‪ #‎DoingItAnyway

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Enter ----> the bargaining phase. The "planning" phase. The "if I can get x pages done today and 2x number of pages next week then I can be done" phase.

Do you bargain with your projects? Do you play time games to keep your brain engaged during the boring, middle bits?

‪#‎AskingForAFriend ‪#‎FaustianBargainsAnyone ‪#‎MaggieAndChristian‪ #‎WritersLife

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.Moment of intense bravery coming:

I figure you've been listening to me talk about my book this long, I guess it's time to tell you what it's about! ‪#‎MaggieAndChristian

And if I haven't mentioned it already, thank you for coming along on the ride.

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Further reading: