
Before I’d ever written a book, I thought “done” meant writing the last sentence of a manuscript, maybe followed by a dramatically written “The End.” Now I know, that’s only the beginning…
For several years now, I’ve been setting the goal of releasing my second novel, Frost. But unexpected things have come up in the world at large, as well as my work life and my personal life.
I still plan on releasing it. I hope in the near future. But I’m not setting anymore “I want it done by…” goals. Because what does “done” really mean? I now have a complete novel with a beginning, middle, and end. It’s been through numerous drafts and several edits. But the quality still isn’t what I want it to be. So now I’m going through the manuscript, yet again. This time my focus is on worldbuilding more than plot/character. Frustrating? Yes, but also necessary.
I reached a point this year, where I could have published it. I gave it a lot of thought. But I don’t want to publish something and then regret it. I wrote about this a bit in my How Prolific Do I Want to Be post several years ago. At the time, it seemed like I had another year or so of work on this book. Actually what I’ve said about the status of this book then is similar to what I’m saying now: a number of drafts, several edits, and still not done.
Does that mean I haven’t made any progress in the last few years? I hope not! It’s easy to fall into that trap, but I’m trying to remember that Frost is a better book now than it was when I wrote that post (also it was called Frozen Heart then. I like Frost better.)
In some ways it feels like posting this is a failure to finish my book. I compare myself to other indie authors who seem able to publish three books a year, while working full time, raising five children and training for the Olympics. But I’m not them. I can’t produce quality writing at that pace. I hope someday I can, but I’m not there yet. That’s not a failure on my part.
The book is coming.
I’m just not sure when.
So to all my many fans eagerly awaiting my next release (kidding!) it’s going to be a bit longer. I don’t know how long. But hopefully the book will be better for it.