I Hit SEND

The word count aim for The Catalina is 90,000 to 100,000. I’ve been off-grid the last fortnight ruthlessly cutting words, sentences, and scenes. At the end of that read-through, I’ve got it down to110,000 but I’m not done yet.

What I have done is hit the SEND button on an email that’s given me a new deadline of mid-January 2027 to ensure the word count goal is achieved.    

The email was to an editor who was recommended to me by one of my creative writing tutors and she has agreed to provide me with a Manuscript Assessment.

Pressing the send button on the email to this editor who I’ve never met, was tough.

Eighteen months of writing my story about The Catalina is now going to be ‘Assessed’ and the feedback is going to be constructive and professional. It will help me present the story in the best way I can to increase my chances of being picked up by a traditional publisher.

And… it scares the heck out of me.

My head is full of double-sided chatter. In the red corner it’s throwing punches that challenge and taunt me. In the green corner it’s guarding and blocking with ‘enjoy the process’, and ‘keep an open and growth mindset’.

Yeah… easy for me to say.

The editor has agreed to take me on as a client, however her diary is full until mid-January 2027, with the Manuscript Assessment to be completed mid-February 2027.

Sure, I could seek out another editor, but this person has come highly recommended by people I trust and who know more about this writing business.

So, next year it is.

For now, it’s onto another word by word, line by line read of The Catalina. Truthfully, I’m looking forward to reading my book again to see what needs to be re-written, shortened, cut, shaped and polished to hit my goal of 90,000 to 100,000 words.

In my next post, I’ll let you know how I’m going.