Excitement and Anticipation

In less than one month my debut novel, Street Preacher, will be released.  There is much to do.  I anxiously await final proofs of the manuscript and cover art.  Meanwhile, I am planning for a release party in October where I hope to distribute my book in person.  All of this is very exciting, and I am hopeful that the book is well received and will pave the way for my second novel (which is in the beginning stages).

However, in quiet times I am haunted by this thought, "people are going to read it."  That is a scary thought.  Up until now, only a few have read it.  My wife read it and she loved it.  Of course, she is the most supportive person I have in my life.  She would not tell me if it were awful.  A couple of friends read it and offered some criticism.  They were tough on me, but I think it improved the book.  So what am I worried about?  A fellow author read it and also enjoyed it.  Was he just being nice?

I suppose I am most anxious about finding out if the ideas in my head really made it onto the paper.  I began Street Preacher with a rather unusual character and then undertook the huge challenge of seeing him interact with the world around him in a transformative way.  I poke some fun at some church pet peeves of mine and I challenged some common ideas of the Christian faith all while trying to get to the core of something.  I tried to dig down to the very core of what it means to trust Jesus.

Somewhere in there, I began to realize that although I am nothing at all like my main character, I would find myself at that same core.  So now, as I am a bit nervous about reviews and reception and sales, I am probably most anxious about the fact that I've exposed something.  I've uncovered a bit of my self and tried to pick and dig until some truth came out.  With publication, I do that with an audience.

No turning back now...