This month we’re going to talk about rituals around “finishing”. Wickeds, how do you celebrate typing “the end” on a novel?
Sherry: I’ve never typed, “The End.” I wrote a whole blog about it which you can read here. I do however celebrate sending a manuscript to my editor, usually by a meal out or during the pandemic by getting takeout from a favorite restaurant. Oh, and some sparkling wine — nothing says celebration (or it’s a day of the week that ends with day) like some bubbles around here.
Edith/Maddie: Contrary to Sherry, I love typing The End. I just did it on Memorial Day, in fact, after a weekend of marathon writing. I know I still have lots of work ahead to fix that rough first draft. Still, it’s cause for celebration if I get the gist of the story down on paper. But like Sherry, I agree that nothing says celebration like some bubbly!
Jessie: I also recently finished a manuscript and felt it called for a celebration. And like both Sherry and Edith, I popped open a bottle of champagne. I adore bubbles in any form and can think of no better way to mark an occasion than toasting with something effervescent with loved ones! I also celebrate by tidying my office and puttering round my house and gardens with all the things that I have put off whilst steaming to the end of a novel!
Barb: Like Sherry, I never type “The End.” This process is, well, such a process, I’m not sure when The End would be. My writer’s group used to be great about celebrating all the little victories, since they are so few and far between in a writers’ life–the end of a first draft, a completed manuscript, a submission, an acceptance. Now that I’ve moved away I’m not as good about it, but my husband and I did celebrate my last submission with a wonderful lunch.
Julie: I mentally type “the end” right before I hit submit, though I know there are more steps ahead. I need to get better about celebrating each of these steps–I don’t and should. I certainly tell people I coach that they should. I do dance a little in my chair when my editor accepts the book, and I dance a lot on release days.
Readers, how do you celebrate completing a large project?