A Sense of Accomplishement

I have been sitting here for a half hour trying to focus my mind on editing and get this new post out. But all I can think about is that my first children's book is getting published! I am anxiously awaiting the first proof for my physical copies. I am spastically checking all my links, planning and plotting my marketing campaign!

So, we are going to take a short break from the endless editing tips and celebrate the joy and pride and sense of accomplishment you can look forward to when you finally finish and publish your own book! It is amazing! There is no feeling like it!

I am the first of my siblings to have completed a bachelors degree program and the day I graduated I was quite proud of my accomplishment, but it wasn't anything like this! I imagined my success in the business world would look something like the first image above. After graduation, I couldn't find a decent job. I finally took a position as a manager for Movie Gallery and bailed just before their boat went down to take a job that I was overqualified and underpaid for, but would at least pay the bills.

Things were tough with that job, and I kept putting applications in at other places, but nothing came of it. As my husband got closer and closer to graduation, I felt more guilty about taking a career job when I knew we wanted to leave the area once he graduated. My company gave me the chance to work from home and I thought this was the answer.

Working from home, I could be there for the kids and my husband could take a part-time job. I would have time to focus on my writing and slowly build my career with a little extra money from this job keeping us afloat. I started submitting queries to agents right and left. I started a sequel to that book. I felt like this might just be the best thing for me.

Two weeks before Christmas, my job laid me off. My world felt like it was crumbling. I was a failure! I could not support my family. I had a stack of rejection letters building up. The economy in my area was at an all-time low and my husband only had one year left of school. What were we going to do?

We ignored the problem through Christmas and the New Year, then I set to work looking for any job that could sustain us. On January 6th, I got a letter of interest from an agent. Less than a week after I sent her my full draft, she offered me a contract. My husband and I weighed the pros and cons and decided (with incredible support from my loving mother!) to take the leap of self-employment!

I started writing full-time. I started building my platform. I started this blog, which everyone said would make me money through Adsense (BTW, don't plan on living on Adsense, if you choose to make this leap! SOOOO NOT HAPPENING!!)

After a couple of crappy contract offers, my husband and I were beginning to doubt our decision. But he is in his last semester. I can't justify taking a job I know I might be leaving first of the year, so I knuckled down. My novel is still under contract, but I have tons of writing! What could I publish first?!?

And I pulled out Prince Vince, something I wrote back in high school, and started polishing! After months of working mad hours, worrying, plotting, planning and pushing the envelope; I have finally gotten a look at the finished product.

I feel giddy, I feel transcendent! It is almost like the first time I thought I fell in love!

When people like my link to my book, I feel like I did showing off my child for the first time.

When people talk about how much they liked it, I nod my head with a deep satisfaction. I did that! I made them feel that way!

When I see that another person bought my book on Amazon, I feel  on top of the world, ready to explode with my excitement!

Some of you out there are probably thinking I am completely mental. Some of you are envious of my ridiculous euphoria. Well, take the leap, commit yourself to finishing your project, spend the hours editing, re-editing, fighting to get it published, formatting, re-formatting, jumping through all the hoops with no guides and at the end when you find yourself landing on your feet... then you will feel the way I feel!

When you see your mom's eyes tear up because of your dedication page and you see the pride she feels in your accomplishment, then you will know how I feel.

It has been a long year of self-employment, building toward this day. Things are lining up and I am starting to see the possibility of success in this long, lonely road of being a writer!

Keep at it, believe in yourself, work as hard as you can and you can stand here too!

Until next time, keep writing!