When a Plot Twist Changes Your Plans

Or Why My Publishing Date Changed

Professional writers share many traits. We’re human. Sometimes life disrupts our creative work in ways we can’t predict. That happened to me last month. Here’s an excerpt from my November newsletter that explains the plot twist in my life.

My Life’s Plot Twist

At the beginning of November, I had all kinds of things on my to-do list filling my brain. I don’t know about you, but my brain is always about 6 steps ahead of whatever I am doing. That’s helpful sometimes. Sometimes it’s the complete opposite. On Thursday, November 6, it was definitely not helpful. 

I was in a hurry and not paying attention to my surroundings. I tripped over something and did a face-plant onto my driveway. Not one of my smoothest moves.

Long story short, I ended up in the hospital to treat several deep lacerations on my face, a concussion, and a broken nose. 

Concussion Syndrome protocol meant I could not look at any screens for two weeks. Yeah, they’ve never seen me before. I told them; I have a book to get out. The doctors stressed how much it would help my brain recover if I avoided screens…so I did as they advised. 

I’m home and recovering with the help of family and home health professionals, but recovery is slow. The broken nose and associated facial swelling make it impossible to wear my glasses right now, which means my eyes tire of reading or writing very quickly even when I zoom up my screen view to 300%. 

The Good and the Bad News

The good news is that And When I Wake is back from my editor (she loved it!) and I’m now working on getting the manuscript ready for ARC readers.

I have been resisting suggestions I needed to push back my publication date. However, the bad news is that I cannot work for very long each day. I could do none of the marketing I had intended to do, and now, I realize I cannot complete the minor revisions suggested by my editor in a timely manner. I will not release a book that is less than my best effort. Therefore, with my deepest regrets, I’ve pushed the book’s publication date back to January 14, 2026. It is still available for preorder!

How to Adjust When Events Disrupt Your Plans

Life can be fairly smooth for a long time then something happens that changes everything. Having a plan for what life goes sideways is essential. How do you plan for the unexpected?

Don’t Give Up

The first thing you may need to do is to change your mindset. Many of us, including me before, get stuck in an all-or-nothing mindset. Thoughts like, if I can’t work this week because of this problem, I won’t get it done on time, so I might as well give up. Or something like that. This often happens immediately after the event when you’re still reeling from the sudden shift in priorities. Don’t decide too soon. Give yourself time to adjust to the event, however long that might be. 

In my case, I decided not to even reassess what to do about my writing business until I’d been out of the hospital for a few days to a week. 

Have a Plan

It helps to have a plan for the expected ordinary days first. I’ve talked about the systems I use to plan my days. Read 3 Awesome Systems to Improve Your Productivity for more information about those systems. I prefer a system for planning productivity because it isn’t rigid.

How you plan your day isn’t as important as having a system that works for you. Once you have a plan, you can adjust it as needed. When do you need to adjust your plan? Sick days and unexpected events can derail the best of us. But experienced planners don’t just plan for the ordinary day. They plan for the low-energy days, too.

Low-energy days are those days when you are physically ill, or need extra sleep, simply need a break, or something unexpected came up and completely derailed your plan (such as my fall). On those days, if you tried to get everything done on your task list, you’d end up frustrated because you could not get it all done.

Planning for low-energy days means different things to different people. Your plan may be to include one day a week where you have only one small task to accomplish that day. Or maybe you choose that day to be free of any responsibilities. The thing is that day is like a get-out-of-jail-free card. You use it when you need it and move that day’s tasks to another day in the future.

I prefer to allow myself to do minor tasks on my low-energy days. I might give myself a 15- to 30- minute time slot to write on my WIP. If after that 15-minute mark, I’m still struggling, I don’t have to write any longer that day.

Sometimes an event causes a total disruption of your plans. Here are steps you can take to clarify how you need to adjust your plan.

Re-assess how your plans match up with reality

When faced with an event that upsets all your plans, there are steps you can take to make certain you still accomplish those things that are most important to you.

Prioritize

Rate the things you had planned to do in order of importance. But don’t forget the most important thing: PROTECT YOUR HEALTH (physical, mental, emotional). Without your health, you’ll be unlikely to return to your same creative energy.

After your health, prioritizing important tasks can be done, but you must avoid all-or-nothing thinking. Not everything on your list is of equal importance. Prioritize the rest of your tasks by asking the following questions:

• How much do you want it
• What do you need? (Healing, help, time, money, patience)?
• How much time / energy do you have to devote to your craft?
• Which tasks are time-sensitive?
• Can you afford / find help (either for your tasks or for the event that upended your life)?

Be as objective as you can so your prioritized list will help you keep moving forward or, at least, prepare you for moving forward.

Getting Back On Track

If the event in your life made you unable to create for a while, it may be difficult to get back on track. Most likely, you will experience some difficulties in getting back to creative work. Awareness of this and a plan for getting back to work are crucial.

Give Yourself Grace

Despite the adage “get back on the horse,” which implies you must do so immediately, you may not be able to get back on track immediately. Give yourself permission to work back up to the pace you had prior to the event. I can hear you thinking, but I’ve got deadlines…I thought that too. Would you tell your best friend, “You’ve got to get back to work as fast or faster than before?” Give yourself grace and use kindness in your self-talk. You are doing your best, and that’s all anyone can ask.

Acknowledge Your Challenges

Giving yourself grace means recognizing your challenges. Your physical, mental, and emotional challenges after the event may differ from before. One of your challenges may be energy. There is only so much stress you can take. Don’t endanger your well-being. Work within the scope of your challenges. 

Manage Your Expectations 

Set yourself up for success. Give yourself time to get back up to speed. I learned the on-ramp method from Body Brain Alliance, a compassionate, science-based coaching service. Just like a highway on-ramp, break down your tasks into even smaller parts so you can start slow and build speed over days.

Environmental changes can help you step back into your creativity. If you can not change your location, make your current situation as comfortable as possible. Consider creating a new routine that will signal your brain that it’s time to be creative.

If you can change your environment, go to a library or a coffee shop or outdoors. The change will help your brain change gears from dealing with a crisis mode to creativity mode.

Don’t forget to take care of yourself. Give yourself permission to start slowly. Support yourself with frequent breaks and exercise. Practice fueling yourself with nutritious foods and giving your body and brain the rest they need.

Let People Know

There are people in your production and supply chain that need to know what’s going on so they can be prepared for changes in your schedule and or to support you during this event. 

Most writers and creatives are fairly independent creatures. Asking for help and coordinating with others can be difficult for us. But part of prioritizing is knowing what you are best at doing and allowing others to help you with tasks they may be as good or better at.

Plot Twists are Inevitable

I’d love to hear from you: Have you ever had to adjust your creative plans because of an unexpected life event? How did you handle it? What advice would you give to other creators facing similar challenges? Share your experiences in the comments—we can all learn from each other’s plot twists. And thank you for your patience and understanding as I recover. January 14th will be here before we know it, and And When I Wake will be worth the wait.

P.S. For those of you who are missing the usual first Monday of the month, worry not. This “breaking news post” temporarily displaced this month’s First Lines post. Watch for its return next week.