That Moment When…

That moment when you finish writing a book.

That moment when you realize how much work is left to do.

That moment when you edit relentlessly, polishing every word until it shines.

That moment when you think it’s taking a long time but you know it’s worth taking a long time to do it.

That moment when that effort pays off.

That moment when you get to see it for yourself.

That moment when you hold your Advanced Reader’s Copy, the first physical validation of your work.

That moment when you look at it and see yourself compared to some of your favorite authors.

And see some of your favorite authors saying nice things about you.

That moment when you open it up.

That moment when you were a kid and spent a good half an hour studying the map at the start of a fantasy novel.

That moment when you get to do the same thing for your own book.

That moment when you realize your ARC is out in the hands of all those authors you admire.

That moment when you realize it won’t work for everyone.

That moment when you realize it did work for someone.

That moment when you realize that someone is someone whose work you devoured and were left salivating for more.

That moment when that someone is Robin Hobb and she says some super awesome things about your book and you get really fuckin’ excited and holy shit this book is happening and it’s going to be great.

That moment.