# Well...I finished the first draft. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 17, 2003, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520 "2003-12-17T12:38:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/1 "2003-12-17T12:38:15Z")
Of my book. Yes, I know it shouldn’t have taken this long. I just kept going over it and over it, trying to get every word and phrase just perfect, not use too many adverbs, not repeat myself…Finally, Mr. Rilch gave me a deadline/ultimatum: get it done before **Return of the King** , or he’d email the SDMB mods and tell them to ban me. So it’s done. Well, not completely done, because nothing’s ever really done until other people have looked at it and made suggestions. I’m not so cocky as to think it couldn’t be better. But for now, I’m done. Now I can enjoy ROTK. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/2 "2003-12-17T12:41:06Z")
Did I mention that I’m shaking? ---
**Author:** ![Shade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2bfe46/32.png) [@Shade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shade)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/3 "2003-12-17T13:02:45Z")
{{Rilch}} Well done. What’s it about, etc? ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/4 "2003-12-17T13:21:02Z")
A teenage couple. I don’t really want to say more at the moment, except that it is **not** fluff; it’s not in the Sweet Valley High/First Love/Sweet Dreams mode. It’s a novel, not a book. ---
**Author:** ![JeffB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeffb/32/188_2.png) [@JeffB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JeffB)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/5 "2003-12-17T14:20:39Z")
Congratulations! That’s a major accomplishment. ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/6 "2003-12-17T14:22:47Z")
Lady **Rilchiam** , congratulations. I bet it’s a huge relief to have completed it. It’s your baby, after all. I wish you all the luck in the world. I’ve certainly enjoyed your posts here, and I’m sure that same wit, wisdom, and panache carries over to your fiction writing. ---
**Author:** ![cowgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@cowgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cowgirl)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/7 "2003-12-17T20:24:28Z")
Congrats ! i just finished a first draft of my Thesis. finally. Not as impressive as your book, I know, but can I share a biddy bit of your glory? ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/8 "2003-12-17T20:48:20Z")
…a novel about…? ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/9 "2003-12-18T03:14:09Z")
**JeffB** : Thank you! **dantheman** : Thank you, and ::😊:: **cowgirl** : Yes, you can! **Wang-Ka** : I thought I told you. It’s a story about two teenagers…e-mail me if you want to know more. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/10 "2003-12-18T11:50:53Z")
Also, just lettin’ y’all know… I hope I’m not jinxing myself by composing the dedications page already, but what the hey. > [@](#): > > To my husband, for believing in me and letting me write all night; to my mom, for being more eager to see a finished book than a grandchild; to my dad, for teaching me computerese. > > Also thanks to Fritz, who kept me going; Mr. Jim Talarico, who told me I wasn’t a loser; Amanda, who posted my stories on the net; Alyssa, who read them and gave me feedback; and the wonderful people of the Straight Dope Message Board, for reasons too numerous to list. > > Special thanks to Arthur Pond of the North Hollywood branch of the LA Public Library, for rescuing my manuscript from the ether. ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/11 "2003-12-18T12:36:07Z")
How cool! We got a collective thank you! ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/12 "2003-12-18T13:06:25Z")
Big deal. I know for a fact that all the following have done what you’ve done: Margaret Atwood Patricia Cornwell Maya Angelou Edith Wharton Janet Evanovitch Mary Gordon Shirley Jackson Katherine Mansfield Alice Munro Carol Shields Virginia Woolf A.S. Byatt Annie Proulx Joyce Carol Oates Oh I get it …you add **Rilchiam** to **that** list. Well, damn…congratulations. The company you keep. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/13 "2003-12-18T13:18:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by don’t ask \* > \*\*Big deal. I know for a fact that all the following have done what you’ve done: > \*\* Done what? Wrote a book, or thanked the SDMB? ---
**Author:** ![Black\_Train\_Song](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4da419/32.png) [@Black\_Train\_Song](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Black_Train_Song)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/14 "2003-12-18T15:08:08Z")
What happens AFTER the book? How does a first timer shop a novel or story around? And…Congrats! ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/15 "2003-12-18T15:33:03Z")
**Rilchiam** , in case you don’t check your email regularly… you got some. Mail, that is. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/16 "2003-12-18T15:58:27Z")
Too cool and well done! Luck with it! ---
**Author:** ![singular1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@singular1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/singular1)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/17 "2003-12-18T19:36:09Z")
Woo-Hoo! Good for you! I just finished the first half of mine, so I know how elated (and drained) you must be. Whatcha gonna do with it now? ---
**Author:** ![cowgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@cowgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cowgirl)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/18 "2003-12-18T19:45:07Z")
Yah, when does it hit Chapters? ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/19 "2003-12-18T21:04:10Z")
What’s the difference between a book and a novel? I always thought all novels are books, but not all books are novels. Please 'splain… Congrats on your book. Where can I read your other posted stuff? ---
**Author:** ![DeadlyAccurate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@DeadlyAccurate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeadlyAccurate)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520/20 "2003-12-18T21:14:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Rilchiam \* > \*\*Also, just lettin’ y’all know… > > I hope I’m not jinxing myself by composing the dedications page already, but what the hey. \*\* I’ve been composing my dedication page in my head for months. The SDMB will DEFINITELY be listed in my first book published. Congratulations! I was shaking when I finished my first book. I still remember the sort of awe that I felt that I’d really finished a book. A real, whole book. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-i-finished-the-first-draft/219520.md?page=2)