I completed my fourth draft on Saturday. I actually left the house and spent a good eight hours reading through it from start to finish and polishing it up.
Now it is off in the hands of the wonderful people who have agreed to critique it for me. I'm looking forward to hearing what they have to say, but it is so very scary!
This is the first time anyone will have read my book. I have spent almost a year of my life working on it, and while I think it's a wonderful book, I am aware that others may not agree.
So now I'm just anxiously waiting. I don't know how long the critiquing will last. I haven't really given them a time when I'd like it back, although I am hoping by the end of September. I started the book in October of last year, and it seems kind of nice to polish it up all wonderfully and start looking for an agent in October of this year. Of course, I may have a lot more editing to do after I hear their feedback, so there's a decent chance it will be later than then. Still, that's my hope.
I don't really know what to do with myself. I've spent so much of this last month reading and editing and reading and editing some more.
The obvious thing would be to start my next book, but that will vary a great deal depending on if this one gets published or not. If it does, it is the first book in a trilogy, and I would begin book two. I have that book outlined and ready to begin, but I am hesitant to do so. This first book may not be good enough to get me an agent and get published, and even if it does, there may be great changes that need to be made to it that would impact the content of the second book.
If it isn't publishable, I have a couple books pretty well planned out to start writing, but again, I don't really want to start writing one and then have to stop if my book does get published. It seems jarring to stop writing a book in the middle, and it also makes it harder to really consider starting.
So I'm working on my query letter to help me find an agent. I'm doing some research for the two books I will choose between writing if this book doesn't get published. I think I will start planning out some of the prophecies that will have a big impact on the rest of the trilogy if this book does get published.
It's kind of strange to be aimless and very anxious at the same time!
Although, I expect this is nothing compared to the nerves I will feel when I'm actively trying to find an agent.
