Storytelling: Taking the Scenic Route
July 23, 2026
This month, we celebrate “National Climb a Mountain Day” on July 30. I’ve never climbed a mountain, nor do I expect to accomplish this task in the near future. However, I’ve written a book, and that’s counts as climbing a mountain in my estimation.
When starting a novel, it seems insurmountable to achieve a desired word count. But you begin the climb nonetheless, working on one page or one scene at a time. Slowly, the pages build.
It’s good to take a breather in the middle to reassess your progress. This pause might affect which path we take next. Should we alter course? Is there a different way to the top than we’d anticipated?
When I began DREIDELS AND DEAD ENDS, my latest release and #19 in the Bad Hair Day mysteries, I’d only intended for it to be a holiday novella. But the story became more complicated as I jumped into Marla’s world and got entangled in her family situation, her salon business, and her latest mystery to solve. She wasn’t going to let me quit so easily.
Midway along, I realized I had enough material for a novel. It might be shorter than my recent books, but as long as I hit the required word count minimum, I’d be okay. I guess I just have a hard time writing shorter works.
When we pause along the mountain to reflect, our course might change, and that can be a good thing. A surprise clue, a new informant, or a revelation might alter our sleuth’s direction. Business issues, love interests, and family conflicts add to the personal threads. Weaving these elements together makes for a stronger story.
Slowly and steadily, we’ll climb the mountain until we reach the peak. Typing “The End” at the summit brings us ultimate satisfaction, and that’s the feeling we hope to give our readers when they turn the last page.
When you find yourself struggling to complete a task, what is your approach?
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Posted in Let's Talk, with Nancy J. Cohen • Tags: Bad Hair Day Mysteries, Driedels and Dead Ends, Mountains, Nancy J Cohen | 13 Comments
Hi Nancy, for me, it seems like every book has a mountain in the middle. I keep on task by only looking at today’s writing goal. Bit by bit, it becomes a novel.
You’re absolutely right, Cheryl. Writing a book seems insurmountable at the start, but we slowly get there.
For me, the best way to complete any task is to break it down into smaller steps and to check off each step as I complete it.
On migraine days I try to putter around and if I am able to accomplish anything I am surprised and thankful for the distraction.
I agree that even a small task can give a sense of accomplishment. And sometimes a break can lead to greater productivity. We don’t have to complete everything at once.
I agree with Barbara and Cheryl. Breaking it into smaller tasks helps. I also find that focusing on a small problem to be solved in those smaller chunks can be helpful.
This is a useful approach for any problem, although sometimes it’s easier said than done. For writing, I try to focus on one scene at a time.
I was going to say that breaking it down into smaller pieces is one of my ways to get myself to accomplish something I’m putting off, and I I *do* do that as much as possible; however, sometimes I just force myself to push through until I complete the whole thing by planning some kind of reward (special food or time to read or something like that). 🤩
A reward is a good idea. I tend to forget this advice, but each milestone in writing a book could come with some sort of treat. It would work for household tasks as well.
When I have a writing task to do that for some reason doesn’t get done. I put that at the top of the list for the next day. I have tried before to do writing in the afternoon to no avail. So anything writing related must be done in the mornings. Sometimes I balk when a problem seems too big. Then I lower my standards for a partial completion several days in a row. As I get closer to the end of the larger task, excitement pushes toward the finish line fast. I also think its a very good idea to remind yourself that you did good by completing a complication task/issue/problem.
This is true, we tend to forget to congratulate ourselves for the small things we get done. Like you, my creativity surges in the morning so that’s when I focus on writing. Afternoons work for revisions or marketing, even if it’s one chapter or one social media post.
When it comes to writing, I always read the last scene or chapter I wrote the day before prior to starting the next day. When I’m at a point where I’m stuck, I go back and read through from the beginning. I find immersing myself in the story in that way helps me overcome whatever hurdle I’d encountered.
I’m doing this now, reading through my work in progress to polish the story while refreshing my mind as to what I’d written. Too many distractions have pulled me away, and I’m only one-third done.
Congrats to Barbara C. who’s won an ebook copy of my cookbook. I’ll be in touch!