It's finished...I hope

I finally finished expanding a short story into a longer short story. Last night, I completed revisions on it. I'm going to give the wonderful people from my critique group the opportunity to look it over, then on Monday I'll send it back to the editor who requested the expansion.

I can never say enough good things about critique groups. I thought my writing was great several years ago. Then I joined a terrific critique group (the one that helped me with that short story) and learned that I knew next to nothing about writing. Their gentle guidance and helpful words have brought me to the place I'm at today. Two short stories published and an editor interested in a third. Through critiquing others' work, I discovered a love for editing and honed my skills to the point where I now work as an editor.

I've become a lot busier in recent months and my participation in critique groups has slowed way down. I try to keep up with the emails and help out when someone has a tight deadline. This weekend, since I no longer have that story hanging over my head, I'm hoping to spend some time critiquing chapters for those who have been kind enough to critique my chapters. I doubt I can ever repay all of the people who have helped me on my writing journey, but as I get farther into the publishing world, I hope I can provide some insight that might help my fellow writers succeed.

I'm still far from my dream of having a novel published, but I'm getting closer all the time. I hope to finish revising a couple of manuscripts and start submitting again soon, but it's okay if it takes me longer than originally planned. One thing I've learned through studying the publishing world is that it pays to be patient. The more time I spend polishing my manuscripts and making sure they're as perfect as possible before sending them out, the better my chances of gaining the interest of an editor and/or agent.

I'll update you all on the short story I'm sending out Monday just as soon as I hear anything from the editor. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and praying that this publishing house is where God wants my story to be. I have a good feeling about it, but we'll see what happens.

Have a great weekend, everyone, and check back on Tuesday for a new post!