It's a term we used back when I was a teacher. The idea is that at the end of the year, students who struggle with change will start to regress to how they were at the beginning of the year. It's a defense mechanism.
I'm starting to think I might be doing something similar with my writing. Panicking about little things, falling back into old habits. After all, The Crimson Spark has a date now and that's a commitment. And I think deep down there's a part of me that wants to keep working on it. That's what I've been doing for the past decade and it's a comfort zone. Outside of that is where all the scary new things are waiting.
But when I get like that, I imagine my little teenage self, first deciding he wanted to write a book and what he would have to say to me if he found out I was hesitating. He wanted nothing more than to share that story and despite my anxieties that hasn't changed.
The Crimson Spark is coming on October 11, 2019 in paperback and ebook. No drm, kindle unlimited, all that good stuff. Beyond that is the unknown. I have the Opal Embers which is still being worked on, but I also have another idea, something a little more flamboyant . . . stay tuned