I’ve made it to a pretty big milestone. Twenty first drafts in twenty weeks!

And you know what? I’ve hit a slump. I haven’t wanted to write. I haven’t had any good ideas. I did’t like what I was forcing myself to write.

So how did I battle it? I forced myself to write first draft number 21. A full week early, I finished my next first draft. And with it an epiphany.

Use my experiences to write.

I know this seems fairly obvious. I mean, hello. I am traveling the world, so why not use my experiences and observations. And I have been. Sort of. I’ve written many stories influenced by my travels, but only vaguely.

So for first draft 21, I sat down and made a list of all the countries I’ve been to (on this trip). Then I listed under each, thing that made that country unique. Thing I observed. Things that make that country interesting to me. Then I thought about how these thing affected the kids who lived in these countries.

I found this approach inspiring. Lots of ideas came to me.

The hardest part is thinking up stories that are relatable to children in the US or other parts of the world. Kids act the same all over the world, but can be in situations other kids wouldn’t be able to relate to at all. I’ve seen children steal a boat, get hit by a motorcycle then get up and run off, and play in and out of airport security. Not very common in the US. So, I focussed on just being a kid.

This new process may keep me going for a while. I have an amazing opportunity with this trip. I cant waste it!