When I started writing Riding Full Circle in 2017, I had just returned from riding around the world. I wanted to start the book right away, and did, but my brain was still so jumbled and overwhelmed with what parts of our two-year journey to tell. As a result, the first year, I produced something that was way too long and scattered. 

I’ve been a writer for almost three decades, but I’d never written a book before. It became a daunting process, and the further I got from coming home from my travels the harder it was to get back into that mindset. 

Fast-forward, and life happened. A whole year went by where I barely opened the manuscript. I was busy getting married, moving to a new country, starting a business… 

Luckily, something sparked in me one day, and I clicked on the saved file and started writing again. I can’t fathom how it took me seven years to write The End, but one thing I’m grateful for is that time and distance between the woman I am today and the woman I was when I came home from that adventure, gave me a chance to see myself more as a character in my book. I had better perspective, and my mind was clearer on what to keep and what to delete; what I wanted to tell and how I wanted to tell it.

As a result, I have… a mother-effing long book, still.

Which is why I’m very excited about its next stage. The 400-pager will go to three beta readers, who I hope will help tell me where I can cut, cut, cut!

Or, it’ll turn into two books…

I’ll keep you posted!

HL