{"id":1944,"date":"2026-04-05T17:16:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T13:16:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/?p=1944"},"modified":"2026-04-05T17:17:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T13:17:19","slug":"rewriting-your-story-and-embracing-change-with-guidance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/2026\/04\/rewriting-your-story-and-embracing-change-with-guidance\/","title":{"rendered":"Rewriting Your Story and Embracing Change with Guidance"},"content":{"rendered":"

After my experience of co-writing an audio crime story with 8000 Mondes,<\/a> I felt the urge to return to something more personal.<\/p>\n

One simple question kept bothering me: should I start a new story, or go back to my first one\u2014the one that had occupied me for three years?<\/p>\n

I had written it as I went along. I knew it wasn\u2019t perfect. Far from it, in fact: a beginner\u2019s story, with its shortcuts, blind spots, and easy solutions.<\/p>\n

But had I improved enough to turn it into something more accomplished?<\/p>\n

One thing was certain: there was no way I was going to dive in headfirst like I had the first time. If I went back to it, it would be for a true rewriting process\u2014one aimed at nothing less than every writer\u2019s Grail: publication.<\/p>\n

I needed to move forward. To improve. Really.<\/p>\n

So I started looking for a coach. Not someone to teach me how to write their way, but someone who could help me write better in my own way.<\/p>\n

Someone who pushes, questions, and digs where it hurts\u2014without betraying the original voice.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s how I met Marie-Dani\u00e8le Merca<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We immediately clicked, and we began working on rewriting The Elisa Cycle<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I started by presenting my world and my plot. And very quickly, there was already a lot to say.<\/p>\n

The first challenge: the antagonist. And that\u2019s where things got tricky.<\/p>\n

Because I have a persistent flaw: I like things to move fast\u2026 even if it means resolving both major conflicts and minor issues a bit too quickly.<\/p>\n

I had to learn to let tension exist\u2014to stop resolving everything right away.<\/p>\n

Surprisingly, that wasn\u2019t the hardest part.<\/p>\n

No. The real wall\u2014the one I hadn\u2019t seen coming\u2014was this: giving substance to the story.<\/p>\n

Giving body to the scenes. Describing places and atmospheres. Making characters exist beyond their dialogue.<\/p>\n

I really had to push myself, and at first, I was quite skeptical. But in the end, I chose to trust the process.<\/p>\n

Still, let\u2019s be honest\u2014it was a monumental struggle.<\/p>\n

There was trial and error, rethinking, expanding, adding, reshaping. And above all: understanding.<\/p>\n

Understanding the path ahead\u2014and accepting to follow it, telling myself: \u201cIt will be better afterward.\u201d<\/em> And the result speaks for itself: it was always worth it.<\/p>\n

There were times when I would come in with a chapter I thought I had fully worked through, only to completely restructure it after a coaching session\u2014because of, or rather thanks to, Marie-Dani\u00e8le\u2019s questions.<\/p>\n

That necessary step back, essential to improving a text, is much easier when guided by someone else.<\/p>\n

In the moment, it can be unsettling. But it\u2019s worth it.<\/p>\n

Today, I\u2019m so used to revisiting things in depth that when a chapter receives no substantial feedback, I\u2019m almost disappointed\u2014and honestly a bit incredulous:<\/p>\n

\u201cHow is there nothing to fix? Are you sure?\u201d<\/p>\n

I almost feel like asking if it was really read.<\/p>\n

Authors\u2019 bad faith, right?<\/p>\n

Looking back, I have absolutely no regrets about the investment. This support helped me make huge progress.<\/p>\n

My writing has evolved. I have evolved.<\/p>\n

And clearly, in the right direction.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After my experience of co-writing an audio crime story with 8000 Mondes, I felt the urge to return to something more personal. One simple question kept bothering me: should I start a new story, or go back to my first… Continuer la lecture →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[146,142],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-behindthescenes","category-fiction-en"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4u88f-vm","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1916,"url":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/2026\/04\/chapter-12-on-dalygaran-part-one\/","url_meta":{"origin":1944,"position":0},"title":"Chapter 12 – On Dalygaran \u2013 Part One","author":"Annie","date":"5 avril 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Since my arrival on Dalygaran, my time has been very full. The mornings have been dedicated to physical activities, supervised by the Major. My body, I was told, is a brand-new model whose capacities have yet to be tested. I feel like it is more me they are testing. The\u2026","rel":"","context":"Dans "I - When you think about it"","block_context":{"text":"I - When you think about it","link":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/category\/fiction-en\/think\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/pendule.jpg?fit=340%2C240&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1928,"url":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/2026\/04\/chapter-15-back-on-earth\/","url_meta":{"origin":1944,"position":1},"title":"Chapter 15 – Back on Earth","author":"Annie","date":"5 avril 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The following morning, I awake early and come out of my bedroom to go downstairs with all my drawings. I show my hosts the one for the school and give the others to them, included my selfie. Just before my departure, Fragrant Flower from Isadora Plain gives me a big\u2026","rel":"","context":"Dans "I - When you think about it"","block_context":{"text":"I - When you think about it","link":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/category\/fiction-en\/think\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/levee_soleil.jpg?fit=340%2C240&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1864,"url":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/2026\/04\/chapter-9-the-passage\/","url_meta":{"origin":1944,"position":2},"title":"Chapter 9 – The passage","author":"Annie","date":"5 avril 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"This morning, I had my third travel. The two Smiths welcomed me as usual. I got into the travel chamber and then waited for the gas. I arrived in a world under a blue light. As if the sun, or something, hadn\u2019t succeeded in rising... I think it was the\u2026","rel":"","context":"Dans "I - When you think about it"","block_context":{"text":"I - When you think about it","link":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/category\/fiction-en\/think\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/vitesse_lumiere.jpg?fit=340%2C240&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1922,"url":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/2026\/04\/chapter-13-revelations\/","url_meta":{"origin":1944,"position":3},"title":"Chapter 13 – Revelations","author":"Annie","date":"5 avril 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Great Council meeting is in two days. I have gone back to my indoor training in the mornings, and I spend my afternoons with Fragrant Flower from Isadora Plain. The Major\u2019s initiative of taking me up to swim was not appreciated by his hierarchy, who remind him that my\u2026","rel":"","context":"Dans "I - When you think about it"","block_context":{"text":"I - When you think about it","link":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/category\/fiction-en\/think\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/dematerialisation.jpg?fit=340%2C240&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1857,"url":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/2026\/04\/chapter-8-second-journey\/","url_meta":{"origin":1944,"position":4},"title":"Chapter 8 – Second Journey","author":"Annie","date":"5 avril 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"At the second travel debriefing: Beth:\u00a0 Something wrong? Why are you looking at me like that? Smith1: Sorry? Beth: Your faces. I wish you could see your faces. Smith1: Oh sorry. Don\u2019t pay any attention to us, we\u2026 Smith2: \u2026 just had a strange phone call during your trip. Nothing\u2026","rel":"","context":"Dans "I - When you think about it"","block_context":{"text":"I - When you think about it","link":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/category\/fiction-en\/think\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/orion.jpg?fit=340%2C240&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1846,"url":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/2026\/04\/chapter-6-first-journey\/","url_meta":{"origin":1944,"position":5},"title":"Chapter 6 – First Journey","author":"Annie","date":"5 avril 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"- The two Lords? Why do they call us the two Lords? - Just ask them, eh! - Very funny. - Oh? Do you not think, as I do, that it wouldn\u2019t be very clever to ask for an explanation about something we are not supposed to know about? -\u2026","rel":"","context":"Dans "I - When you think about it"","block_context":{"text":"I - When you think about it","link":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/en\/category\/fiction-en\/think\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/espace_couleur.jpg?fit=340%2C240&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1944","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1944"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1944\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1948,"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1944\/revisions\/1948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/annierun.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}