Goodreads asked Iffix Y. Santaph:

How do you deal with writer’s block?

Iffix Y. Santaph If there's a writer's block, I take a step back and ask myself if there's some reason the story doesn't work. Usually that is my greatest block. Something isn't quite right.

Along with being a writer, I have spent some time in my history as a table-top roleplayer. So I have come to see that just because the narrator wants something to happen doesn't mean the character always agrees. If I let the character guide the story, usually it gets the job done far beyond what I would have hoped for as a narrator.

Actually, the decision I made to publish a novella series was a character-driven decision. I had been in the process of finishing a narrator-driven novel and my characters essentially said they didn't like where their story was going.

I took a step back and found out I had essentially written two completely different stories into one novel. (If you're a Brandon Sanderson fan like myself, imagine Elantris if the three main characters' paths never crossed. That was essentially what was happening with books 3 and 4 of my series.) I concluded that splitting the story into novellas would make the story more easy to follow and the overall product would be more coherent.

I'm pleased with the result so far. I hope you will be too.

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