"Glowing" and First Book Review

A lot of people have asked me how it felt to publish my book. Those same people probably also wondered why I immediately looked down at the ground and started to giggle after they asked. Now, to a certain extent this reaction really isn't that weird. I mean, I should be smiling, right? I just shouldn't be smiling as if someone had just told an inappropriate joke, and I'm trying so not to laugh that I start to frown and end up making this red-dimply-pouty-face.

After that description the reason I give for my reaction is going to seem extremely anticlimactic–but that's actually perfect, and you'll see why in a second. You see, when I hit the "publish" button on Amazon's site, a very deep satisfied feeling washed over me. This feeling was also familiar, because it's the same feeling I get when I finish a paper for school.

Yes, that's right. Publishing my first book felt exactly like finishing my homework.

Oh God, isn't that embarrassing? What, it doesn't seem embarrassing to you? Just imagine how the conversation would go:

Random Person: "So Katherine, I heard you published a book. How does it feel?"

Me: "Great! So great! I feel as wonderful as I did when I finished that 10-page paper on Chaucer."

Random Person: "Then why don't you just write an essay instead of a book?"

Well, I guess that's not so bad–or at least marginally better than shuffling my feet and giggling. But really, why does something that I've spent months working on give me the same satisfied feeling I get when I finish a paper? Am I really that big of a nerd?

However, in my defense, the glow from publishing a book lasts much longer. I put After Eden online on April 17th, and I'm still feeling it. I walk around with a smile that's probably a little too big, because people on the street are always stopping me and asking me what's wrong. I tell them that I wrote a book. They ask me how it feels…

I think you know where it goes from here.

Anyways, I decided to share this little story because I got my first review for After Eden from a book blogger today. While it isn't exactly a glowing review (amongst other things she did mention that I had a tendency to repeat words, hmm…), it is very fair and respectful. I couldn't be happier that Sharon from Obsession with Books took the time to read and review my work, which is probably why I'm glowing from a 3/5 star review

The full review can be found if you click here. Also, this Friday Sharon is going to pick a random commenter (who has also subscribed to her book review blog) and give them a free ecopy of After Eden. So check it out!