IWSG: Back to the Editing Cave.

If there's a sign above the editing cave, it doesn't read "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here."  It probably reads "You have no idea what you're getting into, do you."

And in case you're wondering: no, I don't.  >_<

Today, I start editing The Book of Lost Runes.  In theory, I'll start tonight, as I do most of my creative work after the sun goes down.  In practice, I'm really looking forward to working on this book again, so I'll probably start this afternoon.  Maybe before that.  I'm glad to be starting this, but I'm also kind of nervous.

This is the first time I've edited a book since 2013.  I wrote two books in 2014; the first one I hated once it was done, and the second one I decided wasn't the story I wanted to tell in that world shortly after finishing it.  So it's been a while since I opened up a first draft and started hacking away at it.

No, I'm not nervous because I've forgotten how to edit.  It hasn't been that long.  :P

I'm nervous because I really enjoyed writing this book, and I don't know if that's going to continue once I start working on it again.  After all, I tossed aside two books last year.  Who's to say that won't happen with this one as well?  I don't want it to happen, that's for sure; I spent a long time developing this book and I want something good to come of it, or at least, I want it to have a fair shot.

There's that really sarcastic part of me that's saying "Of course, every book should have a fair shot at getting rejected over and over again, as per usual," but I'm mentally kicking it in the face as I type this and will pay it no further attention.

I'm also nervous because, despite all the time and effort I put into plotting this thing, to say nothing of writing it, I don't know what I'll find once I get started.  Part of why I do so much plotting beforehand is to make sure everything about the story works before I even write it.  I've rewritten massive amounts of a book before, and if I can avoid that with better plotting, I'd like to.  But that first book I wrote last year, I plotted it out well in advance too, and I discovered a massive plot hole in the antagonist's actions as I was writing the last few pages.  So there's precedent for thinking I could have missed something significant along the way.

It's not that I won't do rewrites if I have to.  It's that I'm filled with my usual doubts and then some about this book, especially because I really want it to work.  I want to get it into readable condition so I can finally show it to people, and rewrites will only delay that.  The only reason I'm concerned about time is that two of my beta readers will have significant time constraints after August.  I know that's the kind of thing I shouldn't be thinking about, but these people have volunteered to read my book, and I think I should at least try to be accommodating.

None of this is going to keep me from editing, of course, or keep me from doing what I need to do with the book.  Whatever that needs to be.  I just wanted to get all this out beforehand, so hopefully it won't bother me once I start.  I'm just hoping it goes well.

And now that the dream book's done, I'm really looking forward to editing that one, as I finally figured out how to make the working title work for it.  It's going to take a ton of work to make it what I want it to be, so that will be a ridiculous project.  ...which it's always been, so at least that's nothing new.

Next week: editing progress, unless I find something more interesting to write about between now and then.