Has anyone here written a book?

[Terracata]

I'm writing a fictional book. Based on my experiences. I'm not planning on publishing it. I just live writing and think it'd be a huge achievement.

Has anyone here ever written a book? How did you feel after you finished?

*love

I've had two novels published. I'm glad when I feel a manuscript is good enough to send to my agent but it never feels finished. I don't read anything of mine after it's published because I see a hundred things I'd like to change and make better.

Reading nice reviews is very rewarding.

I write novels. Lots of revising. I’m about to send off an MS to my agent, and I reckon it’s probably draft 20.

Yes, I self publish on Kindle.

Great sense of achievement (and relief) on finishing something, but the finished work never quite matches up to what I envisaged when starting. Like MeowCat, I never reread my work, unless I need to remind myself of what I wrote.

Two. One academic (nobody would want to read it except people in my niche field) and one "commercial" non-fiction via my agent.

I've written several books. Funnily enough, once they are "done" (by which I mean last round of copy-edits in, proofs checked, then back with the press) I don't feel anything. It's strange. I never look at them again and sometimes forget when publication day is.
The process of writing (and moments of success, like finding out a book has sold) I get a lot from, but the book being done - in terms of out in the world - doesn't mean that much to me. And I HATE reading my own writing, seriously cannot stand it.

I have published 2 books. I definitely felt relieved when they were finished! And then sick as a dog the moment I sent them to be published.

Mine are collections of poems written by Mumsnetters so I had the added worry of whether the other contributers would approve of what I'd done with their poems!

I still find it funny to think they exist and sit on bookshelves across the world!

I had planned to write a guide book on forgotten & derelict, abandoned WW2 RAF airfields; Of which there are hundreds out there (especially in Lincolnshire, Norfolk & Yorkshire) that most people aren't even aware of, just sitting there rotting... Many complete with buildings, control towers, air raid shelters & runways etc. Being taken over by nature and farmers who own a lot of them.
There is a niche of people out there (like myself) who love to hunt them down and photograph them, aiming to visit every single one in the UK.

Anyway there's quite a few books out there which feature details about each airfield, but none which give you the clues on how to actually find them and what is left in the present day etc. I even had a publisher interested.

Sadly it never happened as I had a child, became the sole parent a year later and poof! Off it all went. Besides, I no longer own any kind of computer. New priorities!

There's something quite magical about holding a copy of your own book and seeing them on a bookshelf. I also love writing, and there's a huge sense of achievement when I finish one book and also sadness that the 'journey' is over. But then I start on the next one and the process begins again.
My personal advice? Write your book, enjoy the journey, publish it on Amazon (KDP) and even if you are the only person who buys a copy, it's still a rare achievement.
Who knows, you might end up with a best seller.

I'm tempted to write a book about teaching and how absolutely batshit my school is 🤣 in a good way 🤣