In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning

. . . are when the best ideas come.

Case in point.

Just the other day, I discovered a major problem with my new manuscript. All day I futzed around searching for a way to make it work my way. I could've changed it a couple ways to make it work, but it would have become a different story.

The new story would've been OK, but it would differ in a big way from the way I really want to write it.

I wrote a friend and spelled out the problem. She had a few suggestions - good ones - and I spent the evening pursuing one of her ideas. By the end of the night, I had a solid direction to follow up on the next morning.

Upstairs getting ready for bed - well after midnight - I had a V-8 moment. Duh! I knew exactly what to do. Such a simple answer, too. How come it took me all day?

I don't have the answer for that question. I do know this kind of thing happens to me a lot. After I give up concentrated focus on a problem and think about something else, the answer often pops into my head. Usually this is right before bedtime or right when I awake in the mornings.

It's as if my subconscious says, "About time you gave up and let me handle it."