Simon Says... I'm Writing a Book. Again.
On not letting your eight-year-old self down.
Welcome to Simon Says, a weekly newsletter from Rachel Simon about writing, not writing, and sort-of-, kind-of, I’m-putting-words-on-a-page-but-let’s-be-real-they’re-garbage writing. For current and aspiring writers, but everyone else is welcome, too.
Last week, I did something I’d been scared to do for months: I opened up the novel I’d been working on pre-Pickleball for All. Although it’s been my dream since I was, like, seven to write a fiction book, I’ve struggled hard to actually make it happen. Last year, I finally got a draft together, but I had to put it aside at the beginning of 2022 to focus on meeting my deadlines for Pickleball. Fair enough! But when those deadlines passed around March, instead of jumping right back into the novel, I told myself I deserved a break from book-writing for a bit. Also fair! But then, March became April became May became June became July—and I was still using every excuse in the book (heh) to not write. I was busy, I was tired, I wasn’t feeling well, I was traveling, I was… avoiding writing (and editing) at absolutely all costs. Suddenly, six months had passed since I’d even looked at the 100,000+ words I’d written.
The reason was simple: I was scared. Really scared. Going back into the book meant having to confront the words—good and bad, and mostly bad—that I’d written and attempting to make them better. It meant sitting in front of my laptop day after day, even when I was exhausted or had Youtube clips I could watch instead, and not leaving until I’d made real progress. It meant thinking critically about things like plot and structure and dialogue, all the stuff I’m worst at, and digging deep into my own memories to pull inspiration and character. In other words, it was gonna be hard AF. And, like many human beings, I am terrified of doing anything that doesn’t come easy, and that I can fail at.
But I am also terrified of never writing the book of my dreams, the coming-of-age YA novel I’ve had living inside me since I first read Speak and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Prep in high school and thought, I could do that too. I’m scared of letting my inner eight-year-old self down, the confident and determined girl who’d say, “okay, the articles and the crosswords and the Pickleball book are cool, for sure, but what do you mean, you haven’t written the book yet? What are you waiting for?” She’d remind me that this, the book in me, is the reason I’m a writer—the other stuff is just icing on the cake.
And that fear, more than the other, is what got me to finally sit down and open up that Google Doc the other day. It was just as scary and overwhelming and hard as I thought it’d be, but I did it. I edited 1,500-ish words, and since then, I’ve edited and written another 2000. There’s still so, so much to go—I’ve barely even scratched the surface of the hard parts—but I’ve started, and that’s enough for now. I’m determined to not letting another six months go by with my dreams shoved aside. I’m writing this damn book.
And you can all hold me accountable to that.
Everything Else:
I wrote a ton of Prime Day stories this week for Entertainment Weekly, rounding up the best deals on headphones, laptops, Nintendo products, Apple products, Amazon products, video games, TVs, and streaming services. Happy shopping!
I had a really nice time interviewing Where the Crawdads Sing director Olivia Newman for W Magazine. We talked about adapting Delia Owens’ bestselling book, getting Taylor Swift on the soundtrack, and casting Daisy Edgar-Jones as Kya.
I also wrote about the best spice racks for Real Simple and a huge Zappos shoe sale for Travel and Leisure.
North Carolina folks: My fall class with Redbud was just announced! Join me for a six-week course that dives into both personal essays and features on Wednesday nights in Raleigh.
Last weekend, Kurt and I went to the Outer Banks, which was super different than I expected. The sand dunes! Despite the rain, we had a great time.
I read some seriously good books lately, including Recursion (*wild* sci-fi thriller), A Hundred Other Girls (think Devil Wears Prada meets The Bold Type), and Frankly in Love (ridiculously charming YA). If you ever need recs, hit me up!
Speaking of pop culture, I also am so freakin’ into the new season of For All Mankind. Best drama on TV, hands down.
Last but not least, It’s not too late to pre-order a copy (or ten) of my book, Pickleball for All, before it officially drops on August 30!
Thanks for reading, everyone! Hope you enjoyed.
-Rachel