Stick A Fork In Me

As I stated in my previous blog entry, I tend to lose my mind just a bit as I rush toward the end of a book.  I get caught up in the book's momentum and it becomes a struggle to walk away until I finally can't.  I give in.  I let the book wash over me, consume me until there is nothing left of me.  I stay that way until I type those last two magical words: THE END.

I typed those two words on Sunday.  I started typing at roughly 10 am.  I had two chapters ahead of me.  I knew where I was going, I knew how to get there, but I was still on the lookout for surprises.  The second to last chapter was slow going.  It felt like I was tiptoeing through a mine field blindfolded with a broken leg and a walker while being followed by a marching band.  In short, boom was gonna happen.  I was trying to get my character through it without getting trapped.  I thought we were in good shape, but the bad guys ended up with a surprise I hadn't expected that left me shaking my head and biting my lip as the chapter ended.

By this point, it was nearly six in the evening and I still had a chapter to go.  This was the sum up where I tied the last threads neatly together.  After Gage and I had suffered through the last chapter, I decided to push through because it was supposed to be a lighter chapter.  It started good.  We got one last visit from a new character who made me smile, but by the fourth page, I stopped myself.  I was stunned to find that my heart was pounding, my throat was tight, and I was blinking rapidly.  It dawned on me.  Oh my god, I was fighting not to cry! (But I won't tell you if they were happy or sad tears. Mwahahahaha!)

I pushed forward and at 9:05 pm, I typed the last two words and let out a shout that stopped the walkers passing by my open office window.  I was done.

In one day, I wrote more than 10,350 words that resulted in two new chapters.  For the rough draft, the book currently sits at 110,459 words and 347 pages.  But it has no title.

When I walked out of the office, I was laughing with my arms wrapped around myself.  I laughed because I was afraid I was going to start crying.  I don't know about other authors, but when I finish a book, my brain feels numb and sluggish.  I'm emotionally drained from pouring everything I've got into those final chapters.  After such a long day, it's hard to get my mind to sync back with reality.  Everything feels just a little surreal and disconnected.

So, the plan?  Monday, I am unplugged.  Smoke is still trickling out my ears and I keep smelling burned toast.  My brain needs a rest.  I may briefly appear on Twitter or Facebook, but otherwise I am curled up with a book or video game until Tuesday.  On Tuesday, I start revisions for the second Asylum Tales novella.  That should take 2-3 days at most and then I clean up the rough draft of the new book for the next week.

I am tired, but oh so very happy.