2,200 Miles & 22,000 Words Later
Reality vs. Fantasy in Life and Writing
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from both living on the road and being an author, it’s the need to be able to surrender to what’s real in the moment. Whether I’m plotting a story or planning my work and my travels for the next month or even week, I have to be willing to let go of attachment to any of it working out. Characters tend to take over the story and tell what “really happens,” and life throws in its own plot twists.
None of this is a bad thing—everything always has a way of working out better than I could have planned. The story ends up being so much more interesting than I could have imagined, whether it’s my tale or my characters’. Releasing control requires trusting this fact, which has proven itself over and over.
This lesson once again popped up last month in both life and my writing.
The Fantasy
I’d started November with hopes and dreams of completing Knights of Souls and Shadows Book 2 while participating in the Creating Magic Fall Challenge hosted by the Writers Cauldron. The story was plotted, and I’d planned for minimal travel to allow for as much writing time as possible. As I’d written here last time, I had rewards worked out for both me and you, my readers, for when I hit milestones in the book. I mean, I have a new cover, a title reveal, and other exciting news to share. But alas…
That was fantasy, and I had to surrender to reality.
Before we go there, since we’re talking about fantasy, I have an exciting promotion to share with you. I know, this probably sounds like an ad break, lol, but I don’t want you to miss out.
Throughout December, Kobo is hosting Kobo Plus Fantasy Feast, a special collection of over 150 sci-fi and fantasy books available on Kobo Plus, including Soul Savers Box Set Books 1-3 and Knights of Souls and Shadows.
You don’t know what Kobo Plus is? It’s like Kindle Unlimited, a subscription service, but instead of on Amazon, it’s offered through Kobo, another book retailer—and there are differences. First, Kobo Plus includes both ebooks and audiobooks for one low price. Also, because Amazon requires KU books to be exclusive to them, these Kobo Plus books are not in Kindle Unlimited. Plus, you can read and listen to as many books as you want each month for a small price. Kobo has some amazing dedicated reading devices, but you don’t have to own one. Their app is available in both the Apple and Google Play app stores.
Get your first month free and be sure to check out the Kobo Plus Fantasy Feast…after I tell you about the reality of the last six weeks. :)
What Is Real
In reality, I had to leave the lush forests, mountains, and beaches of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State sooner than I’d hoped for (I mean, in my fantasy world, I may have never left!). A major weather system combined with an elderly Stella Luz (my van) resulted in water practically pouring into my home-on-wheels. The relentless rain meant I couldn’t make repairs to the leaks, nor could I dry out anything inside. So I had to pack up and head to drier and warmer lands.
While I’d spent the summer traveling with my mom in her own van, we went our separate ways. For a number of reasons, I needed time and space alone, and to be honest, for a day or two there, I was seriously ready to quit VanLife altogether. Between trying to outrun the rain and finding places to park for the night, I was not having fun! But then…
Then something changed within me. I believe it started when I decided to backtrack a bit to see Multnomah Falls, which had been on my must-see list.
Maybe because I realized how free I felt in making a series of decisions without anybody else insisting I do something else… Maybe because it reminded me of why I chose VanLife—to explore this beautiful world we share, not caring what anybody else thought or wanted from me… Likely a combination of both of those and so much more, but for whatever reason, I fell back in love with VanLife.
Buster and I meandered our way to Bend, Oregon, to dry out for a few days, then once the storm system finally petered out, we headed south to Mount Shasta, the Redwoods, and the Pacific Ocean in Northern California. We saw the Golden Gate Bridge for the first time ever, observed the San Francisco skyline at sunset (although I wasn’t about to take on those hills in Stella Luz, so we didn’t go into the city), and enjoyed a lovely lunch and some one-on-one time with one of my mentors. And then I headed east to catch up with my oldest son and go to Colorado Springs for the holidays—and a minor rebuild of Stella Luz.
I drove over 2,200 miles in three weeks, more than half of that in four days. I enjoyed (almost) every minute of it. After being stationary for nearly three months, I really needed to be back on the road, regardless of how much I loved where I was. By letting go of my attachment to what I’d planned, I’d received exactly what my heart and soul needed.
As for my writing, I managed to add 22,000 words to Book 2 in Knights of Souls and Shadows. No, I didn’t finish it. I didn’t even get to the halfway point, the first major milestone for the rewards I’d planned. I’m happy with my progress, though, and again, this worked out for the better. I came to realize that Brielle, the main character, also needed more freedom to make her own decisions, much like I had—and I’d been the one limiting her actions. I must have known something was off with my plotting because when I did have writing time, the words often came slowly, sometimes even painfully.
Surrendering to the Moment
I sit now at my son’s kitchen table in Colorado Springs, surrendering to what is in the present moment—rebuilding some of Stella’s interior due to water damage, reimagining what happens next in KOSAS2 (with the help of Brielle), and reassessing what’s next for me. There may be some more stationary time here in Colorado because my funds are tapped out for the time being, and I need to replenish them. And who knows? I do love it here, too, so maybe I’ll stick around for quite a while.
Or maybe I’ll be hitting the road again after the New Year begins.
There was a time that I would be going crazy not knowing any of these. There was a time that I would already have my 2025 goals written out by now and a new planner to flesh out every month and week. There was a time that I’d be sacrificing sleep and health to finish this book. There was a time that I was a prisoner to what I thought should have been.
Instead, I now surrender to what is, right now, in this moment. And it’s the most freeing state of mind and way of life I’ve ever known. I can’t tell you what’s next or when KOSAS2 will be released. I can tell you that control is only an illusion and a limiting one at that. Because life has something much bigger, more beautiful, and more rewarding in store for us when we let go of the reins and surrender.
I’ll let you know when I do.
In the meantime, maybe soon I’ll be able to share some pics of Stella Luz’s glow-up. I’m pretty sure she and I aren’t done yet, but if anything, maybe someone else will get to enjoy her.
Until next time…