Well, no going back now. My book is with the printers. Very soon, Needing Napoleon, for so long a story in my head, will be a reality made of paper and card.
Suddenly, a dream and a hobby is something else. It's going to appear in the real world. Not just something my lovely wife has to edit or something I blog about but an actual book (and an e-book for those so inclined!).
This raises the prospect of public humiliation! What if no one buys it? What if people do buy it and hate it? The idea of negative reviews surviving for ever in some corner of the virtual world makes me feel a little bit sick.
Now I don't expect any sympathy. After all, I could have written the book and put it in a drawer. I enjoy writing and plotting. I enjoy the research. I have even taken a kind of perverse pleasure in the editing. So, I have extracted plenty of enjoyment in creating Needing Napoleon and I could have left it there.
Well, I didn't. I contacted publishers. I accepted a deal. If I'm lucky, I may even sell enough copies to not be out of pocket. So, I will just have to take any criticism on the chin. It's not as if I think everyone is going to like a book about time travel and Napoleon!
So, I need to be brave. Otherwise, what am I going to do with the sequel?!
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