The End...Sadness or Celebration?
This is an excerpt from an article off of Absolute Write, a writing ezine.
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"Typing 'The End'"
By Aaron Paul Lazar
There is a time in every author's life when he or she experiences a sudden pang of loss, and sweet sorrow descends like soggy tissues on a broken heart. Man or woman, romance or action writer, sensitive poet or straight-shootin' scene churner, it hits us one and all. It's the moment we reach at the end of our long suffering days, those focused, driven, passionate hours, plastered with outpourings of words that evolved into our current work in process. The moment we type "The End."
It happens to all of us. Sometimes there's a delayed reaction and suddenly it sneaks up to slay us the next day. Macho man or lyrical lady, none are immune. In my case, I don't actually burst into tears. But my throat tightens, a lump forms, and I fight back moisture that puddles and threatens to overflow.
My God. It's over. What will I write tomorrow?
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How about the same damn thing, all over again? It's called REVISION. And I work on revisions until I'm about ready to kill off my hero and heroine, turn all the good guys bad and form a victor of my villain.
I have never had the feeling this writer talks about. Maybe I'm not emotionally invested enough in my story. Maybe I'm past emotional investment--like a marraige ending in divorce.
Have you ever felt this loss at The End?
4 comments:
I cried at the end of my last two books, not because I was finishing, but because I loved my endings so much. Like Joan Wilder in Romancing the Stone.
That's the kind of cry I like. :)
Aw, how cute. You know you've got it right when you still feel the emotions after writing it, reading it, and knowing what happens.
That's awesome, Edie.
I don't usually feel sad when I finish a book. Generally, I feel relieved instead. LOL I don't usually worry about what I'll write next--I plan my writing schedule a month in advance and have a basic list of the books I'll be working on for the next...oh, probably 3 years given the length of the list. LOL
Hey, nice cover for Secrets, Elisa!
I totally understand about the painful revisions and how they take so much out of you. Good for you for taking time out afterward. Your writing will be better for it.
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