Dear Maggie,
Do you do anything special to celebrate when you finish writing one of your books?
Sincerely,
Party Girl in Patagonia
Dear Party Girl,
Funny you should ask, because I just finished drafting a novel the other day. I’ll admit, when I completed the first draft of my first book years ago, I rode that high for weeks. My husband took one of the original manuscript copies to Staples and had it bound and the title page laminated. We drank a bottle of champagne. Later, I had a big, festive launch party. It felt like such an accomplishment, and it certainly was.
Now, though, I mostly feel relief when I finish a project. Usually, I have some kind of deadline I’m working under, whether it’s self-imposed or not, and finishing the manuscript is a weight off my shoulders. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great feeling to know I’ve written yet another book, and to acknowledge that my imagination and skillset didn’t fail me, so I try to take a few moments to revel in that, but inevitably the next story is already nagging at me.
Currently, I need to finish drafting the final three books of the TSI series before my summer semester of graduate school begins. I don’t mind editing or working with my team on production and publishing, but I want to be fully attentive to the new projects I’ll be working on in school, so these drafts have to be done and dusted. About half-way through book five, though, the writing felt like pulling teeth for no apparent reason. I loved the characters, I’d worked out the major plot arc, but I couldn’t seem to find my groove. You can imagine how panic-inducing that felt with an imminent deadline looming. Desperate to find my flow, I did something I’ve never done before. I wrote out of sequence. I set aside book five and started in on book six. For whatever reason, this one chugged along at a great pace, and that’s the book I just finished. There was much rejoicing, for like five minutes, because that aggressive deadline is even closer now, and I still have one and a half books left to write! Maybe when the series is finished, I’ll break open a bottle of champagne and throw myself a little party.
Thanks for the fun question. If you have a question for me, send it to maggie@msmaggieclare.com, and I’ll answer it here on the blog.
