“I get both elated and scared when I come to the end of a novel. Elated because it will soon be over; scared because I’m afraid I’ll blow it all.” — Raymond Obstfeld
How do you generally feel when you’re about to type “The End”?
19 thoughts on “Reader Friday: Typing “The End””
I am ecstatic for the couple of hours it takes me to send out “Coming soon” to my mailing list. Then I return to Earth while I slog through so many proofreading passes that I am convinced I typed the manuscript with my eyes closed.
Exhilarated!
Time for the bubbly, because the next day, it’ll be time for edits.
Elated because it has taken a long time to get there! 😎
Like shifting gears. I’ve pushed the needle as far as it will go in 1st and it’s time to move into 2nd. Smooth things out and pick up the pace.
Elated! Panic doesn’t set in till later. 😉
Accomplished and elated. I break out the forbidden candy to celebrate! Then it’s head down and back to edits.
I was elated, for sure, when I typed THE END of my debut novel. In hindsight, however, it has seemed more like a new beginning — of revision/rewriting, beta readers, pitches, and queries. A new chapter in my writing life in itself!
Thanks for the question, JSB. How about them Dodgers? First WS win since Kirk Gibson times.
Oh, the joy! Oh, the relief! Oh, the vindication of Clayton Kershaw!
Funny you should ask. I’ll type THE END to a manuscript today. Not sure how I’ll feel but based on past manuscripts I figure it’ll be one of completeness.
Elated, to be sure, and a little anxious, as I consider the revision work ahead. A mirror of the duality most writers hold in their head–that their work is amazing, and that their work is terrible. But, mostly, I’m elated and excited at what I’ve accomplished. The rest can be fixed in post, thanks to revision 🙂
I don’t type THE END; I use the triple hash # # # 😉
Anthony Trollope, the greatest quota man of all time, used to write The End, sigh, then take out a blank piece of paper and write Chapter 1. I feel a sense of relief when I’m done…I’ll take a break…then I’ll start looking at the next project on my agenda. But that evening I’ll celebrate by taking my wife to dinner (check that, this is California…I’ll cook my wife a nice steak!)
I kinda like that ritual idea of taking out another sheet of paper (or creating a new document) and writing Chapter 1. It’s kind of a way to give yourself a sales pitch–“But wait! There’s more!” 😎
The only thing more thrilling for me than typing “the end” is clicking “publish.” Addicted to both.
My fingers tremble, hovering over the T-H-E E-N-D keys.
But then I get over it and, after a break, go back to the beginning and see what further turmoil I can dredge up for my peeps. 🙂
It’s like the end of a long cross-country journey where you’ve experienced all the joy of seeing the sights and all the hard work of flat tires and wrong turns. Finally, you’ve arrived at the destination (the Grand Canyon?) and you take a day or so to wallow in awe. Then it’s time to get back in the car.
So far it’s only happened once. It was quickly followed by the understanding that it, in fact, was not The End. Rookie euphoria…
I am typically exhausted by the time I type The End, and force myself to rest for a few days with no writing, even though the voices are screaming at me to get to the next story.
Closest I have come to a The End elation, was my most recent completion of series under contract, but then with always having 2 or 3 in the queue waiting to get written, I suppose there never really is a true The End.
“I get both elated and scared when I come to the end of a novel. Elated because it will soon be over; scared because I’m afraid I’ll blow it all.” — Raymond Obstfeld
I am ecstatic for the couple of hours it takes me to send out “Coming soon” to my mailing list. Then I return to Earth while I slog through so many proofreading passes that I am convinced I typed the manuscript with my eyes closed.
Exhilarated!
Time for the bubbly, because the next day, it’ll be time for edits.
Elated because it has taken a long time to get there! 😎
Like shifting gears. I’ve pushed the needle as far as it will go in 1st and it’s time to move into 2nd. Smooth things out and pick up the pace.
Elated! Panic doesn’t set in till later. 😉
Accomplished and elated. I break out the forbidden candy to celebrate! Then it’s head down and back to edits.
I was elated, for sure, when I typed THE END of my debut novel. In hindsight, however, it has seemed more like a new beginning — of revision/rewriting, beta readers, pitches, and queries. A new chapter in my writing life in itself!
Thanks for the question, JSB. How about them Dodgers? First WS win since Kirk Gibson times.
Oh, the joy! Oh, the relief! Oh, the vindication of Clayton Kershaw!
Funny you should ask. I’ll type THE END to a manuscript today. Not sure how I’ll feel but based on past manuscripts I figure it’ll be one of completeness.
Elated, to be sure, and a little anxious, as I consider the revision work ahead. A mirror of the duality most writers hold in their head–that their work is amazing, and that their work is terrible. But, mostly, I’m elated and excited at what I’ve accomplished. The rest can be fixed in post, thanks to revision 🙂
I don’t type THE END; I use the triple hash # # # 😉
Anthony Trollope, the greatest quota man of all time, used to write The End, sigh, then take out a blank piece of paper and write Chapter 1. I feel a sense of relief when I’m done…I’ll take a break…then I’ll start looking at the next project on my agenda. But that evening I’ll celebrate by taking my wife to dinner (check that, this is California…I’ll cook my wife a nice steak!)
I kinda like that ritual idea of taking out another sheet of paper (or creating a new document) and writing Chapter 1. It’s kind of a way to give yourself a sales pitch–“But wait! There’s more!” 😎
The only thing more thrilling for me than typing “the end” is clicking “publish.” Addicted to both.
My fingers tremble, hovering over the T-H-E E-N-D keys.
But then I get over it and, after a break, go back to the beginning and see what further turmoil I can dredge up for my peeps. 🙂
It’s like the end of a long cross-country journey where you’ve experienced all the joy of seeing the sights and all the hard work of flat tires and wrong turns. Finally, you’ve arrived at the destination (the Grand Canyon?) and you take a day or so to wallow in awe. Then it’s time to get back in the car.
So far it’s only happened once. It was quickly followed by the understanding that it, in fact, was not The End. Rookie euphoria…
I am typically exhausted by the time I type The End, and force myself to rest for a few days with no writing, even though the voices are screaming at me to get to the next story.
Closest I have come to a The End elation, was my most recent completion of series under contract, but then with always having 2 or 3 in the queue waiting to get written, I suppose there never really is a true The End.