I freakin' did it

And now I just want to shimmy all over my room with this Jason Mraz song on repeat!

I did it, guys. I finished my story for Mina Esguerra's buqo-sponsored Young Adult online class!

Save for my Creative Writing portfolio for my Intensive English class back in college, this is my first fictional work that I am putting out there, like, really out there, so this is kinda a big deal for me. Having said that, I am feeling so emotional right now. (ノД`)・゜・。

I always say I'm happiest when I make, no matter what form: a simple blog post, a crappy watercolor painting, or anything I DIY, but it's a completely different world when you create a completely different universe and give life to characters huhuhu. It's a different kind of high, and now I know how the authors I look up to were able to churn out book after book at a rate even I (who can't go to sleep without reading even one chapter) can't keep up with.

I'm so in love with life right now like you wouldn't believe. ♡

The online class started on January 24 and will end on February 28, which is the deadline of us sending the final draft. I have been sleeping less than three hours a day for the past three weeks, but if I'm being completely honest I only worked on my story for less than twenty hours. The rest of the time was spent either on work or procrastinating by watching movies and Will & Grace, reading endless articles all over the web, taking online quizzes, chatting with friends, and over-thinking every possible scenario about why I couldn't do this.

But hey, against all those odds, I was able to freakin' do it! Nate and Tanya's story, at 5,664 words. Most of my classmates have more than 10,000 words in their own stories, but I'm confident with what I have written. I think it has everything I needed to include, and Nate and Tanya were able to bring me to places I didn't think possible.

Pretty awesome feat, considering I started with this:

Now comes the next part. I have already sent my story to my beta readers and closest friends, and then I will wait for their honest comments about Once Upon a Post-It so I can apply the necessary changes, edit, and then prepare the cover. Until then, I will rest my hands and my eyes (the right side of my face has been twitching all afternoon, probably from lack of sleep) and hopefully work on my romance novella once my buqo YA story has been okay-ed.

I am so happy, you guys. ♡