Bernadette Benda

THE END

No, this is not the end of the blog post. I am just pointing out that those are the two most satisfying words to write.

THE END

I just thought I would do it again to feel how good it felt.

But as much as I like writing those words, I know (as every writer does) that the words the end are hardly the end at all. Writing them usually just means that you finished the 1st draft.

And there still will be a 2nd draft, maybe a 3rd. Then there will be revising, more revising, and more revising…

But there will be one day when you finally come to the point when the story is finished. How you decide when it’s finished is up to you. Maybe because you couldn’t change one more thing without sending yourself to the mad house. Maybe because your editor’s notes were down to, “Fix the margins on your paragraphs.” Maybe it just felt right in your soul. Maybe a pigeon came and knocked on your window and said, “You’re finished.”

Whatever. Every story gets to that point. 

(I think I had a point to this post but I lost it somewhere along the way when I started talking about pigeons. Why am I here again???)

I just finished such a project. It was originally started in 2014. I’m dubious on the exact date. My files say July, but I remember it being cold outside??? It’s my sci-fi short story When the Crows Murdered the Moor. 

It took me a flipping total of 4 and a half years to write and polish 9,000 words. What the heck.

Honestly, there are a lot of reasons this piece took me so long. First off, I was a lot younger. I also was (and still am) working on multiple projects, of which the Moor took the back burner. I would take months off from working on it, and I was in no particular rush to finish.

With the help of my fantastic editor and many meetings in coffee shops, it’s finally polished and ready. I’m excited to see what’s going to happen, if anything is going to happen.

If anything does I’ll let you all know.

It’s a good feeling to be at the end of the journey and knowing I’m at the beginning of a new one (deep man *nods head sagely*). Submitting to magazines and contests is fun, but it’s also nerve racking. So basically it’s:

And this:

All depending on the day.

But what is the Moor even ABOUT? Well, there’s old houses, crows, doppelgangers, and did I mention crows??

There you have it.

THE END

(Have a good week!)