Having a Hand in Decision-making

I’ve received a great deal of feedback on the ending of Vital Deception. For those of you who haven’t gotten to Book Four yet, without giving it away, I can reveal that the last paragraph of the book proposes a question. Some readers have called it a “cliffhanger,” and it sort of is just that, even in a loosely literal sense.

I can also reveal (confess?) that when I completed the manuscript and published the book, I didn’t know the answer to that question. But, really, the answer is not at all important to the storyline in Vital Deception. It is, however, critical to the development of Ben’s story.

In the few months since the release of Vital Deception on April 15, 2022, I’ve actually struggled – a lot – with the answer to the question. Initially, I imagined that I’d let the answer marinate for a little while, and then I’d make a decision, and get on with it – it, of course, being writing book five, and within book five, I’d weave in the answer.

Wow, was I wrong. Not only did I underestimate the volume of reader response with theories and suggestions, but I also misjudged my own ability to answer my own question. I waffled, I procrastinated, I flat-out avoided … and those months have ticked by.

Some might call this “writer’s block.” Could be. Could also be indecision, or a lack of writing fortitude – am I reluctant to answer the question because I don’t want to know the answer? Silly, right? This is fiction. I made it up! There are no stakes. Or are there?

Anyway, as you might imagine if you’ve gotten this far, I’ve finally made my decision. Time to move forward, integrate the answer to the question into the outline of book five that’s already mostly complete – save, of course, for this one really, really, really important detail – and get on with book five :)