Why Seeds of Calamity took so long to write

From start to finish, my writing pace on Seeds of Calamity was one fifth what it was for my debut book, Tendrils to the Moon. What changed?

• The birth of my second child, who turned 1 last week. While my wife's hands were full, I spent more time with our firstborn, which limited my writing time on weekdays. To make time, I started waking up between 3 and 4 am to write.
• Reduced drive. I liken my passion for writing to water topping a dam. When I started Tendrils, I had not written fiction in 6 years. So when the dam broke, all that pent-up desire to write poured out of me. The flow had ebbed by the time I started writing Seeds.
• Plotting. Seeds has a less direct plot than Tendrils. Before I start writing, I have strong ideas about the beginning and end of the story. Writing compelling narrative spanning the middle of a book is a challenge for me.
• Backtracked 6,000 words. In January, I reached a dead end and realized a major plot device in the second act wasn't going to work. So I stopped and replotted it, transforming the whole second act in the process. This, in my opinion, was the single best decision I made over the drafting phase. It facilitated a speedier and more credible plot. No second act doldrums here!
• Premature editing. I broke a cardinal rule and repeatedly went back and edited earlier chapters before I finished the first draft. This worked to an extent while I was writing Tendrils because it helped to beef up setting and characters. For Seeds, not so much. I probably lost months to this aimless tinkering. You don't know a scene is right until you see it in her context of the whole. One of my process goals for the next book will be to not edit until I finish the first draft.

As always, let me know what you think in the comments. I'll reply to you as soon as I can. I invite you to read the first 4 chapters of Seeds of Calamity for free. If it piques your interest, get yourself a copy at Amazon. I appreciate the support!