Okay, I’m calling it a draft now. 82,419 words and at long last, my novel is written through the final chapter. Phew!

I’m not entirely sure how long this really took. My guess is I started in 1999. According to my reading list, I read J. Winocour’s “Story of the Titanic” in February 1998, and Stephen Cox’s “Titanic Story” in October 1999, and since reading is one of my favorite forms of research and this takes place immediately after the disaster, that seems a good sign.

So … ten years.

This isn’t saying that the book is DONE, mind you. Oh, no. Lots of work to be done! This is just the first draft, but considering I was stymied for something like 6 years with a 1912-era legal dilemma that I couldn’t find an answer to, getting the story all the way through to the end … no matter how rough and bumpy it might be along the way … is a relief.

Of course, there are lots of things that need fixing, tightening, and there are holes I know I need to plug. But that’s not the point, right? The point is that I’ve got 290 pages of manuscript that at least finally looks kind of like a book.

That’s kind of a nice way to end the year.

Here, in case you missed them, are some of my favorite posts from the year:

• Pulse Warmers: What little things help you through your day?

• Loot and Plunder: Do you follow through? Or do you leave people feeling like they’ve been pillaged?

• Let the Yeast Do the Work: Because writing is remarkably like baking bread.

• Anticipation: A rare appearance of a poem I actually wrote.

• Spinning Words: Because specialized vocabulary can be fun. (There were two more installments, here, and here.)

• Pet Names: Do you have pet phrases you keep nearby at all times? How well-trained are they?

• Right to Write Right: How important is correct grammar to you when you read?

• Why I Write: Because it’s the best fun around, that’s why!

• Four Reasons to Turn Off Your Computer: (This one should be pretty self-explanatory.)

• Is What You Write More Important than How You Write It?

• Putting Together the Pieces: Because my favorite part is seeing how all the plots, characters, and selling points all fit together.

• How NOT To Get Your Novel Published: Tongue-in-cheek, kind of, but if you don’t want your novel published, these can be important tips! Plus…

• How NOT To Get Hired as a Writer: The companion piece…

• Shoot for the Moon: Because there’s no dream too big.

• Where the Action Is: Are the best stories the ones where events drive the story? Or where the characters do? (Or both?)

• Wanted: Literary Agent of my Dreams: Because it never hurts to put out into the universe what you’re hoping to find.

• You Can Lead a Dog to a Story: Because sometimes what your readers take away is not what you thought you were giving them.

• It’s Puzzling: Building a plot is a lot like creating a puzzle–it’s a lot of backward engineering to make sure everything works.

• Writing Makes Everything Possible: Without it, we’d still be in caves, right?

• Let’s Not Forget Civility: Life is too short to let the DIPs (Delusionally-Important People) ruin it.

• Lost Your Train of Thought? What can you do when your train of thought left the station without you?

• 9 Things You Need on a Freelance Resume: Apparently even freelance writers need resumes, so it’s best to be prepared.

• 7 Reasons a Good Schedule Can Keep You on Track

• 5 Tips for Better Time Management

• Can a Game be a Story? Can an event that’s happening in front of you be defined as a story?

• Why a Copywriter Needs to Tell Stories: Because stories aren’t just important in fiction, they can be the best selling tool you have.

• I Am Woman, Hear Me Blog: Apparently the battle of the sexes isn’t over … not even on the internet.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this trip down memory lane. I know I have!