I’m done!

I woke up this morning and realized I’m done with the novel. It came like a revelation: I’m done!

That is, a good draft is done. There is more work to do. But this is a milestone worth celebrating. And it came to me as if from a dream, on the last day of the year.

To be honest, I really wanted to create a beautiful, brilliant, polished, publishable draft of a complex and demanding novel by the deadline of Jan. 10, 2017. I really wanted to be the solitary artistic hero who creates masterful works of genius in complete isolation, who emerges from hermetic solitude with a gleaming perfect masterpiece.

That was my wish. At times, I believed I could do it. I knew, however, that such wishes are not always realistic. They are, in fact, one reason I created Finishing School in the first place.

As Jan. 10, 2017, approached, I saw that if I rushed, I might be able to solve the structural problems and make the right decisions. But many of those decisions require real thought and reflection. I was concerned that if I rushed it, I might make changes I later regret. I needed more time. And I needed an outside opinion.

Now I know. Indeed, the draft is finished. It’s a good draft. But it’s not ready for publication yet.

So my next step is to find the right independent editor. I have identified a few whom I will contact privately and I will look around a little more.

I know what questions to ask. I know what to do next. I’m eager, actually, to put certain fascinating and demanding structural questions in someone else’s hands for a while.

So … I’ll keep you informed about Famous Actress Disappears.

Meanwhile, and more to the point: Happy New Year! Buon Anno!