Writer’s Shop Talk: Ending My ‘First-Time Novelist’ Journey with One Last Scene for ‘Reunion: Coda’

Midday, Tuesday, April 2, 2025, Miami, Florida

“Finish the book. The world is full of first chapters.” – Julia Quinn

Upon returning from my usual midday break, I will sit down in front of my computer, stare at the blank page on my Word app, and type the opening line to Scene Four in Reunion: Coda’s last unwritten scene. This will mark the end of a journey that began 755 days ago, over 150 miles away, on the other side of the Sunshine State.

Interestingly, despite Scene Four being the last “storytelling” part of the book, it won’t be the final scene. That honor goes to Scene Five, which I wrote late last week and is tucked away in a separate Word document file. It still needs to be edited and revised, but even as a first draft, it looks good and doesn’t read like an “obvious conclusion,” even though it is the ending.

Whatever Scene Four may be, it will be the last story-related bit of the novel – and of the Reunion Duology as a whole. So, here’s to embracing the blank page, savoring every word, and not coming lightly to the challenge of writing.

“Let me say it again: You must not come lightly to the blank page.” ― Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft