3/25/10

Nothing Came Next

I was writing, and I was writing, and I was writing.
Then I was finished.
I looked around for my outline, searched in my head for the next chapter, the next event.
There was nothing.
Nothing came next

I finished it. I finished it when I wasn't even looking. The other two books that I've finished (first drafts, both of them), I had the ending in my sights for a long, long time. Of course, this was never a good thing because I wrote towards it, not through it, and always ended with very, very hurried endings that were...well, they were crap.

The downside to finishing when you're not looking is that after you realize that you've finished, you don't feel finished. My finale has not yet come. When I finished my first draft of the Kassia story, I was ecstatic. I called my best friend at the time and told her. Now, I finished and quietly went to dinner before even posting a facebook status.

I still can't believe it.

A few facts, because I'm an Emerald and I like facts:
  • May 18, 2009 - When I first wrote down what would become The Girl With Violet Eyes (only a few paragraphs)
  • October 18, 2009 - When I first began typing the first draft (official start date, in my mind)
  • November 19, 2009 - Finished the first draft (53,803 words; 89 pages)
  • The time between was spent evaluating what I liked and didn't like about the first draft. This resulted in many bullet pointed lists. Eventually, I created an intricate outline that I followed very closely.
  • January 14, 2010 - Began the second draft
  • March 25, 2010 - Finished the second draft (124,056 words; 194 pages)
I never thought progress like this was possible. This is insane. It's even more insane looking at it. Dad said yesterday, trying to remind me of the seriousness of this work, that I'd been working on it "for, what, two years?" "No," I told him, "months."

I was right. It's really weird to be right. I knew I had thought of it back in May, but to see it all in letters just floors me. It doesn't really seem like it could be me. Me, Jane, write two full drafts in just over five months? Are you kidding?

Apparently not.


^^^ The above is a screenshot from The 
Girl With Violet Eyes. I was hoping it
would end on 123,456, but it ended up
going longer. But it's a cool picture all
the same.

I'm hoping that when I wake up, all of this will seem more real. Maybe I'll actually believe that I finished the thing. Maybe. If it feels like a dream now, I can't imagine what it will feel like tomorrow morning.

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