I finished Draft 1 and I'm feeling sad!!

[stripyeyes]

Totally pointless post really, but finished the first draft of my book yesterday (just under 80k) and I feel a bit lost!!
The ending was bittersweet for my protagonist and I keep wondering what'll happen to her...
Am I daft? I don't know any writers IRL so just wondered if anyone else feels the same? I'm sure once I get into the editing stage I'll end up never wanting to think abut any of them again

I think it sounds like an excellent kind of sadness because you are clearly emotionally connected to your protag, and emotional connection is everything.

You have probably invested a lot of time and potentially emotion into your book, therefore, it is unsurprising that you feel this way. I do wonder about this but how I will feel when the whole thing is finished as I don't plan to write another novel, at least not immediately and it is likely to leave a big gap. On the flip side, I am having a love, hate relationship with the editing process and worry that I may lose impetuous to get it finished, so perhaps part of me will feel relieved!

This is the first book I have written and I do look at all the published books around me and think, how did they ever manage to get that far. Nearly half way through editing draft and lots more work to do!

I am a sahm and have found writing a real life saver with not being able to work currently (complicated) so it will leave a gap for sure - but not for a while yet, I dare say! And then perhaps, it will be time to try something new.

I get a form of depression after completely finishing (I have had real depression, so know what I'm compared it to). Life feels dull and empty. Then a new story blossoms in my mind and all is well again.

There's so much rewriting in the editing stage that I stay in the book, IYSWIM.