Volume 10 is Officially Complete! 🎉✨

I'm too exhausted to formulate a new response/message so I'm reposting this from my Wattpad profile

Volume 10 is Officially Complete! 🎉✨

I honestly don’t even know where to begin, other than to take a massive breath and just say it: RWBY Volume 10 is officially finished.

Getting to the end of this book was one of the hardest creative battles I’ve fought in a long time. Between physical flare-ups, running on low spoons, and hitting walls of intense creative fatigue, there were plenty of days where crossing this finish line felt completely out of reach. But session by session, scene by scene, it came together.

To be completely vulnerable as a writer: like so many of us at the end of a big project, there's that quiet voice in my head worrying whether it’s everything I initially hoped it would be. When you carry a story in your head for so long, the reality of putting it into words always comes with a bit of perfectionist doubt.

Yet despite that whisper, I am so deeply proud of what this story became and what I was able to turn it into. It has heart, it has the characters and world I love so much, and most importantly: it exists, and it is complete.

One day, when my creative brain is fully recharged and fire-tested again, I may take a pass through and give it a thorough revision to polish every edge and bring it completely up to the ideal standard I’ve always envisioned. But for now, the story is written. The journey of Volume 10 is told.

To everyone who has followed along, read each chapter, left encouraging comments, and supported me through the highs, lows, and pauses along the way—thank you from the bottom of my heart. You kept the spark alive.

Now it’s time to celebrate, breathe, and let the brain rest. We made it to the other side! 💕🌸🥳

---Side note: be sure to keep your eyes peeled for Volume 10.5! The first chapters are already in progress 🤗🌷

Pivoting the Creative Engine: Future Planning & A Familiar Face 🌸

It's official. The writing brain is a funny thing. Right now, the gears responsible for heavy drafting and finishing my current draft are still moving at a very, VERY slow pace; especially since my bandwidth to push through general scenes and character interactions just isn't fully back online yet.

Instead of staring down a blank page and getting frustrated, I decided to lean into where my energy actually wants to go: the future of this series.

Keeping creative momentum alive doesn't always look like racking up word counts on the current chapter. Sometimes it looks like worldbuilding, sketching out messy loose concepts, and mapping out the upcoming books. 

Letting my mind wander into what comes next has been the breath of fresh air I needed.

The best part of this brainstorming kick? 

I’ve been developing a few new characters for the upcoming volumes—including one who is very directly, unapologetically based on me 😜 in doing so, I've realized—there’s something ridiculously fun, grounding, and enlightening about writing your own quirks and traits into a fictional universe, especially when waiting for the regular drafting rhythm to catch back up 🌷

My priority is still to bring my writing brain back online and wrap up the current book. But having this sandbox of future ideas waiting on the other side is the exact spark I've needed to keep going 💕

When your main project feels stuck or heavy, what's your go-to "side lane" to keep your creative spirit engaged?

The Slow Upswing: Finding Words on the Other Side of a Flare

 The last few weeks have been rough. My body decided to throw a massive flare-up of inflammation my way. And let me tell you—when physical pain takes over, creative energy doesn’t just slow down—it completely evaporates. At least that seems to be how it tends to go for me. 

Writing requires focus, nuance, and emotional stamina. When the physical system is busy managing pain and inflammation, the brain naturally goes into triage mode. Which means there’s usually no surplus energy left to figure out and describe character choreography, dialogue rhythm, or pacing.

In my case—for all these reasons and then some—my story needed to take a backseat whether I liked it or not.

Thankfully, I am finally on the slow end of an upswing. The fog is lifting, my body is starting to settle, and for the first time all week, the creative gears are actually turning again. They're not up to their typical speed, but at least I'm starting to feel the inspiration break through. 

So, I’m gently easing back into my desk to pick up the RWBY AU finale.

To be completely candid, looking at the draft right now, I still don't see a clear, definitive end-date in sight. The finale has a lot of weight to carry, and I don't want to rush the landing just to say it's done. But with my energy returning, my goal is to keep chipping away and have the final chapter wrapped up by the end of the month.

Progress might be one scene or one paragraph at a time while I rebuild stamina, but forward momentum is forward momentum.

And on that note, I now say to anyone else navigating chronic pain or unexpected setbacks while trying to stay creative: be gentle with yourself when your body hits the brakes. The story will wait for you 🌻🌞

Update @ 11:20 pm: I can't think at all and I'm having trouble reading, focusing and understanding. So...so much for that upswing apparently, huh?