I wanted to wait until you hit that "post" button on the Epilogue to say it:
Congrats on finally finishing this 12 year project with "Holy War"! I'm sure there's a multitude of emotions you're probably feeling. Relief, Joy, Pride, yadda yadda.
My first question for you is; when did you feel "it"? Y'know, that disbelief at the fact that the project is complete. That "Holy fork, I'm finished!" that you may in fact feel again when you go back and mark it as "Complete" in your settings. Like a huge weight has been lifted.
Or maybe you haven't felt it quite yet, haha.
That small note you start with rings true; knowing someone is actively reading and asking you about your stories is honestly one of the most important sources of motivation as a writer.
I was in a similar position a few years ago. I, too, had a Digimon story that started around the same year as ADiSA. And for a while I was pretty consistent at keeping it updated. Though, I had started it back when I was still in High School. And once university hit...well, so did the sparse updates until basically putting the story on hiatus. Between life, lack of time, and that feeling that no one's really interested in it, it just fell into the wayside.
That is, until a few people started asking about it via asks. It lit a spark I hadn't had in years. Not only did I find the motivation to finish said story last year, but I even went back and rewrote the previous chapters for better consistency. And ooooof, it was quite a trial to iron out a lot of that "high school level" writing that plagued the first half. xD
I actually still have a photo (see below) of the entire thing...because I was crazy and decided to write it in pencil first instead of a word document. It helped me focus, alright? Maybe dooooon't do that to any people interested in writing. xD Though in a way it did help me when i needed to make actual changes when putting it into Word.
I definitely plan to go and reread both ADiSA and Holy War (I took a break when I was finishing my story and afterwards had to play catch up fast).
Not to mention maaaybe trying my hand at a new story (let's just say a certain time not-dragon caught my interest recently). But to restate:
Woooo! You did it! Congrats! Celebrate! You did it! 12 long years, but Holy War is finished!
And as I said before: make sure to take a small break! xD Like even a day to unwind. You deserve it!
I'm definitely interested in those notes you plan to release with regards to what changes you would have made or did make with regards to the story.
I'll end it with a 2nd question for my favorite dragons;
Examon and Dorbickmon, given both of you have accepted your roles as Dragon Emperor and Army General, that counts as a sort of "rite of passage" right? Who is flinging the other through the mud as it was tradition in Dramon culture?
Hey! Thanks so much! I appreciate the celebration, and also all of your comments over the years. They always brought a grin to my face.
That's a great question. Honestly, I didn't feel it until I finished writing the last word of the epilogue's draft. I think that was the moment that I punched the air and started celebrating. It felt very good. It wasn't an all-consuming euphoria like I might have expected, but I definitely felt a huge weight off my shoulders along with a lot of relief and pride.
Yeah, I absolutely know what you mean. I like to think that I still would have finished this regardless, but it's hard to really know for sure. I think one has to really like writing for its own sake in order to write long stories like this. I really like writing and I had all these characters and stories to tell, so that was a big motivator. But, with that said, if I got zero reviews every chapter and if I didn't know that people were engaging with it at all, I'm sure that would have been demoralizing. Holy War has been so long that I know that people have dropped off at one point or another, and there was always a worry that people would lose interest after such a large amount of time.
That's awesome to hear, though! Congrats on finishing your story! I'll have to look into it sometime. And, haha, I know what you mean. I'm dying to give ADiSA a fresh coat of paint. I really had to have the discipline to wait until I finished Holy War.
Writing in pencil is pretty hardcore, not gonna lie.
That sounds good! I look forward to it.
Thanks! I've taken at least a small break!
I've been working on those story notes. I've been rambling through them, but I'm getting there.
Dorbickmon: I"m going to be the one doing the flinging - obviously!
Examon: ...You're too short though, Dorbickmon.
Dorbickmon: ...That's it, you're going so deep in the mud that they'll need a Breakdramon to dig you out! I'm an earth dragon, damn it! This is my thing!
