The Dragon Tamer - First Edits Done!

I just got The Dragon Tamer back from the editor at Dreamspinner Press. I'd barely glanced at the manuscript since the day I originally submitted it, and it was nice to review it with fresh eyes. The DSP edits were about 99% formatting edits. It's funny; some authors get touchy over having their writing altered, even if the changes are minor. I think I'm kind of the opposite. The less changes there are, the more nervous I get. That means that I really have to take accountability for the quality of my own writing, and as a first-time author, that's kind of a scary thing!

Aside from the matter of quality, a lot of my fear comes from the fact that my first story is "bittersweet," as in no "happily ever after." (And no, I'm not hiding this behind a spoiler alert; it's being published under DSP's "Bittersweet Dreams" line after all, so there's no secret.) I understand that a lot of readers don't want anything to do with a bittersweet story, but I think these stories still need to be told. At the same time I do admit that I hesitate to write or read a full-length novel that I know will end sadly, only because a novel requires a bigger investment, emotionally and otherwise. I find short stories easier in this case.

I wouldn't say The Dragon Tamer has a "sad ending." I think it has the right ending. But I'm not the final judge; rather, I'm the one on trial.