Last night we watched ‘Albatross‘ on Netflix. If you have a subscription to Netflix, I would recommend the movie, it really was good. Hilariously funny in place, and quite sad in others, a good British movie. (Okay, so I suck at writing movie reviews, but that’s not what this is, so read on!)

In the movie, there’s a scene where, having written her first book, the character then gets it printed and bound, and then as she cycles home, she has this massive smile on her face. For any writer who has completed writing a book, they will probably remember that ‘first book feeling’. That sense of having accomplished a dream, of having created something you have always wanted to create.

It’s amazing. It’s exciting. It’s a feeling of pure unadulterated joy, because you’ve finally done it!

But it’s short-lived. Because once you have finished your first book, where you were free to create whatever you wanted, free to dream of your success, and free to be yourself, hidden away from view, with only yourself to answer to – you then move out into the publishing world, and from that moment on, you can never have that ‘first book feeling’ again.

Or can you?

After having written and published eight books, it’s not easy to remember that feeling, because every time I publish a book, my mind is already on whether my readers will enjoy it, how to market it, and what book to write next. Stopping to enjoy the fact that another book has been brought into existence, rarely happens, because I have so much to do.

But in order to retain the pure joy that comes from writing, and to remain passionate about creating another work of fiction – I know I must take that time to revel in it, to celebrate it, to enjoy it. And I implore other authors out there, busy doing their own marketing and promoting, to do the same. In fact, I have added it to the list of 100 things I will do in 2015 –

To all writers out there who are working on their first book – really enjoy every moment! And when you have finished, celebrate like crazy because truly, it is a massive accomplishment and you should be so very proud of yourself for having done it.

If you have any tips on how to celebrate that don’t involve tons of money or alcohol, I would love to hear your suggestions!