One Little, Two Little, Three Little Fictions

Do you work on more than one piece of writing at a time or do you focus on one piece until complete? I have read of authors working on poetry, short stories, or articles while writing novels.

I am currently writing a draft for a novel at the pace of a few hundred words a day and not feeling a connection to the writing the way I normally do. It may be the story is not heading in the direction I wanted, or it is not flowing the way I expected. I could go back and write that scene again, but I just want to get to the end of this draft.

Another option is to put this draft aside and work on a short story idea rolling around in my head. I jotted down a few notes and want to flesh out the idea more. I have not written a short story in many years, and the thought of completing something (anything) is intriguing.

Why am I able to multi-task up to 5 different projects during work hours and feel confident the projects are being completed on time, but working with more than one idea during my personal time makes me feel lost. If I work on the novel draft, I am thinking about the short story. If I move to making notes about the short story, then I think about the draft I am not writing. Right this minute, I am writing a blog about writing both but currently not writing either! Ha! Score one for me.

Do you focus on one project or work on a few at a time? Do you have several unfinished drafts waiting for your return? Do you have tunnel vision for one project and no room for anything else?

“I’m writing a first draft and reminding myself that I’m simply shoveling sand into a box so that later I can build castles.” — Shannon Hale