Motivational Mondays: Good reviews bring great joy!

Well, it's Monday again, so here's hoping none of you are having a case of the Mondays!  For those of you new to the blog, Mondays are the day where I talk a little about what's motivating me for the coming week.

What I’m working on: I'm still working on Creators, which I plan on finishing today.  I'll then begin the editing process and try to get everything ready for a late June release. 

I'm also planning on going back and reading through Contributor one last time.  I did extensive edits on it before entering it in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards, so it's pretty much ready to go, but I did cut one chapter that I'm thinking about reinserting.  Having had some distance from the work is a good thing, as I think it'll help me make a good decision as to whether or not that chapter is really appropriate any longer.

I am really excited about releasing Creators and then Contributor.  I've really enjoyed writing them!

What I hope to achieve: I hope to make good headway with the editing of Creators.  I'm also hoping to work some more with my cover artists on the art for both Creators and Contributor.  I'm also hoping to see a bump in my sales of The Eye of the Beholder, and I think the fact that I now have a couple of reviews should help.

What are my challenges: This is the last week of school, so finding a good routine and rhythm over the summer is going to be a challenge--but I'm not saying anything any other parent doesn't already know!

In addition to having both of my kids at home with me, I've also got a couple of trips planned and the usual summer festivities such as graduation parties.  Summer is always such a busy time, so trying to be disciplined about my writing is an especially high hurdle in the summer.

What freaks me out: I'm feeling more relaxed this week, so I'm not as worried.  I got my first couple of reviews under my belt, so at least the stressful wait for feedback is over! 

Naturally, I am still dreading the first negative review.  As much as I like my novel, I know not everyone will, so I'm trying to keep that perspective.  I also want to keep my head on straight so that I can learn from my negative reviews.  If I have one mega-fear, it's that I will stop growing and improving as a writer.

What’s making me happy today: I am over the moon about getting my first two reviews for The Eye of the Beholder.  One was a five star, the other a four, and they're both really beautiful and made me feel great.  There are few things more gratifying than working really, really hard to make a work the best you can make it, and to find out that others enjoyed it.  As much as I appreciate my family and friends reading my work and giving me feedback, it's even sweeter to get positive reviews from people who don't know me because they are more objective.

Teaser for Tuesday: For tomorrow's Tidbits Tuesday post, I'll be featuring an excerpt from my work in progress, Creators, along with a little commentary on it.

My first review and I am giddy!

I just couldn't resist posting because, right now, I'm about to do a little happy dance.  First, I yelled, "Yay!" and clapped my hands.  Then I kissed my beaming husband.  And now I have a grin that I just can't wipe off my face, and it's all because I got my first review, which happens to be 5 stars!  To be honest, right now I want to crack open some champagne and then run a few laps around my office.  Few things are more thrilling than having put my book out there and finding out that someone not only read it, they really liked it!

This moment is sweeter to me than I can express.  The Eye of the Beholder was a labor of love over seven years in the making for me.  When I finished writing it years ago, I was very happy with it but, since then, had come to think there were some flaws that needed fixing.  This meant spending months tearing some chapters apart and completely rewriting them before I felt that the book had become what I had always wanted it to be.  That five star review is priceless to me!

So pardon me.  I'll need to go back and read my review a few thousand more times!