The Big Come Down Monday, November 06, 2006

As many of you know, I've managed to get not one but FOUR of my books published. I've got two coming out in December. Last week was a series of "Squeeeee" moments and then the "OMG, what do I do now?". After keeping that up for a while, I came down with a "bump" on Saturday.
In talking to other authors, I found out this isn't unusual. Entering this new universe of edits, contracts and covers, I've found that the initial pink clouds don't really go away, but I don't fly around in them as much.
I wasn't prepared.
So, on Saturday, I found myself a little......well, cranky. Luckily, I'm surrounded by people that, even if they don't understand, love me despite my occasional lapses into weirdness. One thing I've learned from reading threads on Romance Divas and chatting with other authors is TO WRITE. Don't let down. So I've started a new wip called "Deadly Mistake". It's a romantic suspense and I'm shooting for a higher word count. It's the only way I know to handle success, and, for that matter, failure. Keep writing.
With all the nano excitement flying around, emails, contracts and so on, writing has been my stability. It shows me one thing.
Writing is what I'm called to do. No matter what success I have or rejections I collect or sick kids or crabby husbands, I write. It's what I have to do. I can't allow the fear of what may happen next to stop me.
Eight thousand words later, I realize that it relaxes me. Everything else is crazy. Lost in my story, I can relax and let go. I don't know what that says about me, but I think I'll be at this for a long time.
The best thing about where I am right now is that I have people around me to keep me firmly rooted in the writing. Sales, covers, contracts and all the other stuff is important, but it's the writing that counts. So thank you Crystal, Dayna, Diana, Shelli, Lori and the many others that have SHOWN me as well as told me that it's the work that counts, not the number of sales or my name in print.
I'm off to kill off a few more people in my wip. Let me ask you this. What do you do when that come down happens? Whether it's something writing related or not, how do you deal with the high excitement of achievement and everything that follows?