Yesterday, I accomplished something that has been on my “bucket list” of lifetime goals for a long time. I have finally completed my first book of about 76,000 words. I know I talk a lot, but I did not know I had that much to say about anything…I guess when you find what you feel is a good story to tell, it just happens…
I have to keep saying it out loud, “I wrote a book!”…Because it almost feels like I am dreaming. I’m not sure why it feels like a dream… I mean… I’ve worked really hard on this book…I’ve spent countless hours researching information… and developing characters… and giving them life.
In fact, now that it is done I find myself wondering what I will do with all of my extra time that I used for writing the book….But while writing it, I felt as if I had to steal away every precious minute to find the time to get it done. I guess that just proves that if you set a goal, you become totally committed to it, and you dig right in each day to accomplish it…dreams can become a reality.
I’ve been thinking about why this goal has been so important to me…Why do I find the art of writing so compelling? Well, for one…I love books and I love inspirational stories. I also love working with authors to realize their literary goals. I have watched authors I have known and some that I barely know, finish and publish their book…By the time they are done writing it, they are so engrossed and attached to their story and their characters because it has all been created from their mind and soul...Almost like making something from nothing.
Everyone loves a good story. Storytelling goes way back to the beginnings of man. Writing stories with pictures have been found on the walls of caves from as far back as the neandrothals. Even then, they were compelled to tell a good yarn, to make up a fish tale, to weave together a good plot. A lot has been learned about lost cultures from the stories that they managed to write down in any way they could.
From cave walls, to scrolls, to handwritten books, to the printing press…man has continued to satisfy his need to write stories. I wonder how many books have been written now….? Millions…? Billions…? With all the tools we have to write better and to write volumes and volumes of stories…is it no wonder that it sometimes feels like everyone is writing a book?
I have learned so much about the process of writing and I have also learned a lot about myself from this process. Frankly, I did not know for sure if I had it in me to actually finish. When I typed and reread that last sentence, I thought, “Wow! I did it.” What a great feeling of accomplishment…a feeling of great satisfaction.
I’ve come to know my characters in the book so well, that sometimes I even wonder what they are up to and how they are doing. Some of you authors out there will have to tell me if that is normal or if I have really lost my mind this time.
My book is being edited as I write this and I cannot wait to see my work polished and truly complete. And then, what will I do? Pick up the writer’s pen again…of course!
