Self-Editing

I got my first review! My stages as a self published author so far have been:

1. I wrote a book! (excited, self accomplished)
2. My husband and I e- publish it. We published a book! (still excited)
3. I sold a book! (excited, someone's reading it)
4. I sold another book! (still excited)
5. Reality sets in, people are reading my book! (anxiety, self doubt)
6. People I don't know are reading my book! (complete self doubt)
7. What if people don't like my book? (freaking the hell out)

I feel I should enter a side not here that my husband has been awesome through this whole process, there's been a lot of “talking me down from the ledge” lately. I am sure this will get old very soon, so I've been trying to keep it together.

     I've also been working on a work in progress I've been trying to start for a while, my husband keeps calling it “Downton Abbey Porn”. I love historical romances, I love to read them, so why not write them? But it seems the past two weeks every time I sit down to write the self-doubt monster rears it's ugly head and all my creativity is zapped.

But then I got a review on Goodreads!! And it's good! They like my story! But I have typos... embarrassing. I did edit the book myself, but I guess when you've read something over and over you just don't pick up on things, because I know what it's SUPPOSED to say. I also totally understand how annoying this is from the reader's perspective. I read a lot and I've read e-books that have been self published that were riddled with errors, it rips you out of the story, they're distracting. I am simultaneously embarrassed and excited. Embarrassed that I have mistakes, so excited that someone liked my book.

I will be re-editing and I guess taking down and then putting back up the book (that's really on my husband, who is not thrilled, but I guess that will make me edit more carefully next time).

On a brighter note I got a lot of progress done on my work in progress this morning. So maybe my little freak out is over, although I am sure it won't be the last.