Wrote my 1st book, what's next?
It has taken me twenty years... TWENTY years to complete my first novel. To illiterate: not twenty years from start to finish 😅
Ive dabbled in writing a number of different genres over the years and ive never finished them. life, family, work.. they all got in the way.
Fast forward to a few months ago. I broke my knee 😬 and was laid up for quite a while. I thought hey, lets write! And so I did.
It's a romantasy. I've never written anything of the sort before. I've recently finished it. Not 'The end', I've left it open for continuation. I know exactly what will happen in book two when I come to writing it.
I cried like a baby when i got to the end.
I guess my question is: what now?
I know I need to leave it alone for a while and then go back with fresh eyes to edit to manuscript perfection. (How do people do this! This book is all i think about 🫣)
But what about after? When the character arcs are \*chefs kiss\*, the prose is perfect, the plot flows, the flaws are removed.
Do i find an agent?
Do i self pub first?
Do i use online platforms like wattpad and inkitt to gauge interest?
Essentially, my life long dream is to have a physical book of my own. And to share it with the world, like millions of others. Ans I truly believe there is an audience for my work.
What should my expectations be?
Im just a quiet mother in a small part of the world that has dreamt of this for forever. But I'm so scared that it'll just sit on my computer and be forgotten about.
What are my next steps?