Things to do while waiting.

Have you noticed that most of my posts talk about waiting? I keep reading that publishing is a marathon and not a sprint, I have to tell you, it is a marathon. A walking on legos barefoot marathon. 

So you've written your manuscript and you are ready to get published. Well take your shoes and socks off and take your first step on the burning hot pavement covered in legos. Hurts doesn't it? That's the feeling of finding out that maybe your manuscript isn't as good as you thought it was. 

Take your second step, no hopping on one foot here, still hurts doesn't it? The pain is a bit worse. That's the feeling of not having agents breaking down your door.

Do you get the point? So anyway, during this painful marathon (that you will remember fondly one day because lets face it, you're human and we easily gloss over the pain of reaching our goals) you have to find ways to keep yourself busy. How do you do that?

I've been filling my days with thinking about my next book and getting ready to start it. I've also taken on some home improvement projects that mostly involve throwing stuff away. You can take up another hobby, slowly bang your head against a wall, or take up drinking.

The reality is, I don't actually know. You'll spend a lot of time waiting and wondering if your work is good enough to get published, and you'll read other books and think that they aren't nearly as good as yours so why is it so hard to find a publisher? I assure you this is normal and all part of the long barefoot lego marathon of getting published. In the end though, it's worth it. You get to share your work with the world, feel the pride of seeing your book on shelves and maybe even meeting fans. So stick with and keep stepping on those legos, eventually your feet will go numb.