Even The Best Laid Plans

So here I am—on vacation with my family as a birthday present.

Sounds amazing, right?

Except... I didn’t really want to go. Not because I’m ungrateful, but because I’m starting a new job soon and wanted to get my workspace in order first. My head’s been in “prep mode.” But my husband insisted on whisking me away, and next thing I know—we’re packed and out of town.

Now, he did promise a five-star hotel.

And maybe I should’ve known something was off when he kept going on and on about “how great the price was.” Listen, I’m not bougie (okay, maybe just a little)—but I am a hotel snob. And while the name Wyndham might be on the sign, this place is basically a converted Motel 6 with a better lobby.

And honestly? That’s how writing feels sometimes.

Especially lately, as I juggle six books in the same series, all happening on overlapping timelines. In my head, it’s clean. It flows. It makes perfect sense. But once I put it on the page? Chaos. Characters crossing paths at the wrong time, emotional arcs clashing, and events that should sync up… don’t.

Take my newest star-crossed lovers, Terrence and Amara.

After years of pain and separation, they’re finally together. I want to give them a baby—something beautiful to grow from everything they’ve survived. But if I go by the timeline as written, Amara will be in her forties having a baby. And while that’s not unrealistic (speaking from experience—my youngest came at 40!), it complicates everything. If they have more kids, I’ll have to shift the entire story structure.

Which means every character’s arc might change.

Is it a “first-world writer problem?” Absolutely.

But it’s also what I love about this process. The detours. The surprises. The ah-ha moments when, after hours of untangling, the pieces finally click into place and I write something that works.

So yeah. The hotel might not be five stars. And my timeline might be a mess. But the journey? Still worth it.

Happy Writing,

Meli Mel