But first, check in with yourself.

Get out your notebook and your pen and answer these questions.

How is it going? Are you meeting your personal goals for this class? If so, wonderful! If not, what changes can you make in order to fulfill your hopes for the rest of the class?

Is your novel feeling alive to you? Are you connected to your characters and the story you’re telling? If so, I’m glad! If not, what is missing for you right now? What energy could you bring to your novel in order for it to be the right story for this moment? What questions or struggles or ideas are you grappling with in your life that could rekindle your enthusiasm for your story?

Now, turn to your answers to Day 2’s assignment: What you know and what you need to discover. Read over what you wrote and update your answers. What has become clearer to you since then? What remains to be discovered? What new questions have emerged? What has changed?