Writer's Blog: Back in Chicahhgo!

I’ve been quiet on social media this week, in large part because I was relocating back to Chicago from Seattle. (My three-week stay turned into four months because I couldn’t bear to say goodbye to my mom’s dog. Although if my mom asks, I remained because I so enjoyed being with family.)

I’ve also been busy laying out a huge roadmap for Mind Blind’s future chapters . . . which I would share except it would spoil the entire plot. But it’s (mostly) down on paper as a 27-page(!!!!) document.

I want to keep Mind Blind as a single book, but it’s possible that it may take two in order for the plot to get resolved. Barring any last-minute changes, however, I do feel like I’m on track to finish by the end of 2021! The problem, of course, lies with the fact that I often incorporate what I call “eureka!” moments if I feel it makes the plot more cohesive (like Nick being in Button’s head).

This week, I’ve been working on Sally’s scenes and . . . I honestly adore her and Nick? So much?

Don’t get me wrong: the romance between Sally and Button is adorable. I love the dynamic of friends-to-lovers; so much doesn’t even need to be vocalized between them, because Sally and Button simply get each other on this soul-deep level that I think is super rare in real life. The amount of pure tender care in Sally’s route, from both parties, makes my heart ache. Initiating Sally’s romance was a little awkward to write, and I may go back and edit its start, but Sally and Button actively in the relationship feels super natural. I’m really happy with their scene together!

Nick and Sally were my OG protagonists, however, so I remain soft for them. (Fun fact: I based Button’s relationship with Gray in large part of the dynamic shared between Sally and Nick in my original novel drafting—only Gray’s route is sweeter and can have more pining/angsty given Gray’s more serious personality).

If Button chooses to go with Sally in Chapter 8 and isn’t romancing her themself, then she and Nick get some banter together and . . . well, since Sally and Nick are no longer the main characters, I’d forgotten how much I genuinely enjoy them being snarky and repressed about their feelings. It’s not the perfect relationship; there’s a combative streak in their dynamic, which makes it very different than the Sally/Button pairing which is more of the "other half" variety. But the amount of earnest trust that those two have in each other, even if Button doesn’t encourage their romance, is really nice to write (especially when they’re sniping at each other).

Basically, I love their dynamic. It’s real and messy, and as sour as it is sweet. I try not to talk about it too much, since not everyone wants to matchmake them, but I wanted to gush at least a little.

Long story short: Sally is an excellent romance option, both for Button and Nick.

I’ll probably continue to be a little quieter on tumblr/the COG forum/etc. this week, because I still have Glitch’s scene to finish and all the in-between bits to write (which are always the hardest for me). Everyone’s ideas in the Sanctum did help, which means there’s a lot of variation to the scenes. There’s even a K-romance exclusive path, although K doesn’t get their own designated scene this time around! It’s a lot to write and code, but I think Chapter 8 does a good job of giving you a bit of a breather before launching you into the hurricane that is Chapter 9.

Current Demo Length: 235k

Next Patreon Update: March 26