So I'm blogging every day for a month (BEDFAM), just to kind of keep an account of what it's like being a debut novelist when your novel pops out of the incubator and appears on the shelves of the bookseller.
I finally got a stack of work from my editor last night -- edits for in the path of falling objects. I am so happy to get back to work, because I'd been going crazy since finishing my last novel during the first week of August, and, knowing I had edits coming up, I didn't want to start anything new (even though I did) because I can't work on two different stories at the same time.
When I get editing work, I always follow the same routine. First of all, my editor is amazingly talented, and probably understands me better than just about anyone. When I get work from her, I will read it all the way through and then set it aside to let it sink in. This usually means I stay awake all night thinking about how to handle certain changes properly. So, I got to sleep around 3 a.m. and then woke up at 5:30 and began writing. At 7:30, I went out and fed my horses and went for a five-mile run.
That's how I do it.
When I came back, my daughter said, "Dad, are you excited your book comes out in three days?"
Ugh. I shrugged and said, "Yeah."
Thanks for reminding me.
I'll be honest. I am a high-maintenance person. But I'd never play the "tortured soul" card. I got an email from an author friend of mine last night, and he said something to the effect that I should relax and enjoy this part of the ride because this was something I'd always dreamed of.
I don't think so. I honestly don't think of having my novels published as being anything like a dream come true, and I mean no disrespect to anyone who writes or is involved in publishing. The truth is, I always knew I would do it... kind of like a salmon knows he's going to swim upstream, spawn, and die. But I don't think salmon dream of the day. Maybe they do, I don't know. And I don't mean to sound egotistical, either. Anyone who knows me knows I have absolutely nothing to be conceited about. I just knew I would do it one day.
So, here I am. Three days before Ghost Medicine hits the stores, and day six of BEDFAM.
Back to work.
--A.S.
