As I work on the second season of The Care and Feeding of an Angel--which is feeling like a guilty pleasure as I introduce a certain vampire--my mind goes to another project, with Nutcrackers, Mice, time-traveling Swans, and Lampposts that love second-hand smoke. This always happens. When I sit down to one project, another one intrudes, inserting its story into the song I'm listening to, and making me feel mortal and rushed. Have to finish this project, have to finish before I DIE.
So this morning I'm reminding myself that the journey really is the best part. Yes, the rush of excitement and sense of accomplishment that comes from publishing a book is the reason I live, but most of my enjoyment in writing comes from the adventures my characters take me on, or the surprise of a joke I didn't see coming (I am literally laughing ALL THE TIME while writing about David and Jean). I wonder how much frustration I might avoid if I just chilled the F out more often.
So I will go back to writing about the vampire, and when the words die down, I'll go write about a Nutcracker, and I won't worry about the fact that I would publish faster if I gave my all to only one project. It's never going to happen. My brain isn't built for it.
Project surprise (to me. I was surprised): The fact that vampires are an endangered race and Colorado law makes it tricky to kill them.