Etsy Stitcher Doubles as Crystal Ball

I haven't been in school for years, but I'm in the throes of researching a new novel, which is putting me into dungeons of old court cases, legal proceedings, and other sticky nuances that are time consuming and rabbit-hole-esque. This weekend, on the quest to 10,000 words, I came up against my first big wall, and had been writing so much I'd been drained of any linguistic mechanisms through which to express my frustrations.

Obviously, I should have taken to needlepoint—or at least Etsy. Luckily, Alison Hurlburt (user AlisonAnneStitching) did, and read my mind in the process. This little sampler rules.

Get your own "How's My Research Going" pattern here for $4.50.