Draft Zero: Complete!

After plenty of ups and downs and stops and starts, I finished the zero draft of my YA thriller MS this week.

It’s long and rambling, the way all my zero drafts are, and it needs plenty of work, the way all my zero drafts do. On the other hand, I can already tell how much more the intentional plotting approach that I took with this manuscript paid off when compared to the haphazard outlines I’ve used in the past. This story is already book-shaped, in spite of how much work it will need if it becomes a real book. My brain is already overflowing with possibilities for strengthening the foundation I’ve put in place and building something beautiful atop it.

For now, though, I’ll be letting the story rest for most of the next month while I take a much-deserved break. There are other creative projects that need my attention, a new home to settle into, and some celebrating to do. I haven’t finished a draft of a new novel in four or five years, and even though this one took significantly more time than I would’ve liked, I’m proud of it–and proud of me–just the same.