What I Learned Writing That First Booky~Thing

It sure is odd writing a book. Many people set out to do it– few people actually do. In finishing my first novel, I’ve realized a good chunk of things:

~ IT IS NOT EASY TO MAKE THINGS UP AND THEN MAKE THEM INTO SPARKLY WORDS.
I’ve always written songs, poetry, children’s stories and short stories. Writing a full-blown novel is crazy. There is no short and easy end. Sometimes, your need to write and your lack of words will collide, making you an angsty beast.

~ IT TAKES A LONG TIME.
It took me right at a year of legitimate writing to finish my project. A year. I gestated a tiny human faster, but the process was awesome. And grueling. Some finish sooner than that, others finish much later. The fact that anyone is attempting to put a work of their soul out in the first place is sheer magic, no matter how long it takes.

~ YOU WILL NOT ALWAYS HAVE INSPIRATION.
Yep! Forcing yourself to write words that don’t come, or when you’ve got zero clue what is happening is a frustrating ride. Breathing helps. So does walking away and smashing things with a bat!

~ YOUR STORY WILL SURPRISE YOU.
My original outline and my final product are only about %12 (of a plan!) alike. Once your characters start talking, and acting, and doing, and living, things just happen. It’s pretty damned awesome.

WRITING “THE END” IS ONE OF THE MOST SATISFYING THINGS EVER.
Repeat that last line a bunch of times. EVERYTHING IS AWESOME~ everything is better when you finish your book! The life of your book doesn’t depend on being published or anything like that; the life of your book is ready and fulfilled because YOU FINISHED IT! My husband made me a shot of whiskey the moment I finished mine. I cried a little. DO EET. FINISH DE BOOK.

A thousand people have said these same words before me, and tons more will say it after. But as long as we’re all writing and suffering our glorious, amazing, debilitating sufferings together, the world will be full of excellent words.