Whenever I type “the end,” I feel sadness, relief, and a sense of accomplishment. In reality, though, the end is just the beginning of the next stage of preparing a book for submission or publication.
When I finish a first draft, I feel like I’ve made a recognizable shape out of a lump of clay, but the sculpture needs to be smoothed and refined, baked and painted before it is put on display. Writing “the end” means the first draft is done, but the book is far from over. There will be rewrites and edits. Scenes will change, parts will be deleted and new sections added. Other people–like friends, editors, and critique partners–will give their opinion and help polish the final story.
Writing the end is a time to feel good, but its not really the end at all.
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You put it perfectly.
Yes indeed–there’s so much more work to do on a manuscript before launching it into the world of (hopefully eager and numerous) readers, and so much promo to do before/after it launches.