The Beauty of the Blank Page

Happy New Year everyone!

Ready or not, 2025 is here.

Are you a resolution maker? I have never been much of a resolution girl, however as a writer I do like to assess where I’ve been in the past year and where I’m going next.

One of my favorite quotes when it comes to writing is a common one I’m sure you’ve heard. It’s attributed to bestselling author Jodi Picoult.

“You can’t edit a blank page.”

The whole quote actually says, “You can edit a bad page, but you can’t edit a blank page,” however the second half of the sentiment speaks to me most  because it is the encouragement I need to get busy and write SOMETHING.

As a writer, the blank page holds a certain amount of excitement. Stories not yet told. Worlds not yet visited. Beloved friends who are waiting for you to breathe life into them with your words.

But creating a story out of thin air is a heady challenge. Plucking thin threads of gold from the recesses of your mind and then weaving them together till they are shot through the fabric of a tale meant to mesmerize and entertain hungry readers is not easy. In fact, it can be rather intimidating.

Staring down a blank page somehow has the ability to ruffle the feathers of self-doubt. To stir the waters of uncertainty. To poke the imposter bear. 

As I’ve evaluated what I accomplished in 2024, I realized that although I had released 5 books – 4 published and one free in my newsletter, I hadn’t really written any of them in 2024.  I did edit a fourth in series which required some rewrites and about eight additional chapters, but everything else had been written in 2023.

When I sat down on November 1 to crank out my first 1667 words for this year’s NaNoWriMo, I confess to feeling unsure of whether I still had what it took to start and complete a book. Line after line of white space told me how far of a journey it would be. This story has never been told. This world I’m imagining doesn’t really exist. These people aren’t real. They’re just figments of an imagination that sputters and lurches like a manual transmission in the hands of a new driver. Could I consistently pound out the words needed to take me from word one to the end of another new novel?

Well, it’s in rough shape, but I have 3 chapters left to write on my first romantic suspense. I could regale you with all my insecurities about it, but I’d rather tell you the rediscovered joy of storytelling. Why was I publishing but not writing? I never want to not write. Writing is the fun part!

Waking up in the night to describe the cliff the first time the bodyguard saw it. Figuring out the tension and chemistry between the bodyguard and the country singer he needs to protect. Creating personalities for her friends and his security team and realizing as I’m writing that book two just HAS TO BE about the guy on the team who keeps screwing up.

The blank page to an author is an invitation to dream. To be lost and found in the tales that we tell. Can it be intimidating? Sure, but it is also a thrill like no other because what’s on that page when you are finished is wholly yours. Your blood, your sweat, your tears. Your book.

In the past sixty days I have been reminded of the beauty of the blank page and I have decided that 2025 is going to be a big writing year for me. The stories, the stories, the stories. Yes, I’ll slap them up on Amazon haha, but if you wonder where I’ve disappeared to during 2025, you can safely assume that I am somewhere quiet, battling my nerves, and staring at a glorious blank page.

Are you writing new material in 2025? Drop a comment and tell me about it. I’d love to hear what you’re working on.