Update: Yes, I’m still editing.

Yes, I know. I’ve been a long time in edit mode. And I’m still plowing through it. The story is good. Actually, I think it’s great, but as I’ve said before, I’ve been showing it to some people in a writing group. Initially they were supportive, even a little over the top. But then the contentiousness started. Some people think it has two much religion. Some think I’m too hard on the church. Heated arguments ensued. I’ve not tried to portray anyone in any way that wasn’t just simply a part of the story. I’ve seen it all, and I think it’s just realistic and understandable that people would react this way under the circumstances. You have to keep in mind that we’re talking about vampires and people who see divine creatures, so it’s not as if everyone is someone down the street. These people are pushed to the edge. Anyway, everyone has an angle and an opinion about what I’ve written.

David just laughed when he heard what’s happening. People react to good writing, he said. The fact that people have chosen sides and get mad about it is the best news ever.

But I don’t like it. Scares me

There’s another issue. Won’t get into it too deep because of spoilers, but some people think I’ve taken a position in the abortion debate. What happened is simply what happened in the story, and I didn’t even consider the abortion issued at all. But turns out, if someone has a controversial pregnancy you can’t avoid the abortion debate. Anyway, two sides again, and everyone either thinks I’m for or against, and they are all mad at each other and me, and I’m sitting there keeping my mouth shut and thinking everyone hates my guts.

Again, David Kennedy says this is more good news. But some people are cold toward me afterward, and again it’s both sides of the argument.

I’m not a pagan, and this is the other thing. If you write a story with Prometheus in it, are you a pagan? And then you get into the argument of Christianity and neopaganism. I didn’t even know people were arguing about this stuff. Apparently some people are trying to bring back the old gods. You know, Zeus, Hera, Apollo, Athena. All that stuff. “It’s just a story,” I tell them. But when I say it, I know it’s not true. It’s not just a story. I’ve spent almost three years writing my novel. And sometimes I want to argue too.

Again, David says all this is good news. The fact that my publisher wants it is what keeps me going.

So yes, the story is finished, and we’re still editing. I just got it back from the copy editor, and he trashed it. Which, again, David said is a good thing. The story editor moved some things around, but she went pretty easy on it. But the copy editor, who looks at grammar, word choice, any kind of errors, typos. I have a bunch on each page. And then when I make corrections, I make more mistakes, and I’m beginning to wonder if I’ll ever get it to looking like anything. David was surprised at this also. Every time you put a word on the page, it’s possible to have made three or four mistakes. I thought my English was better than that, plus Dragos did the translation, and it is amazing.

Everyone says this is normal, but I felt bad about it. My publisher, sometimes I wonder why he took it. When they first saw it, it wasn’t complete by a long ways, but the acquisitions editor said she fell in love with the story. I talked to her about it. Told her I was sorry, that I thought I had done a better job than that. She keep saying to not worry; it’s going to be alright. This is what it takes to get a novel in shape to publish.

I still have all these other issues. Haven’t talked to my mother. She still doesn’t know I’m here in Edinburgh. I have talked to Gail. Of course, she knows David, and she found out I was here. She was mad at him and me for not letting her know, but I didn’t want word to get out that I’m here because of my mother. I worry at night about what I’m going to say to her when she finds out I’ve been here a while. Maybe she’ll be glad I didn’t let her know…?

And then there’s David and me. His job is demanding, and I don’t get to see enough of him. He’s gone a lot. I don’t like being by myself. When I get down, I go to see his mother. She’s still a little cold toward me. I help with anything I can just to be around her. I try to tell her about my problems, but I think I’m just a burden. You’d think I’d learn life’s not easy. And I get worried about what would happen if David dumped me. Alone in a strange country. I get homesick for Romania.