I've been keeping a copy of Harald's Story in a Word document. Tonight, I printed out a copy of it so I could share it with a couple of local friends. I'm amazed at how long it's getting. It already spilled onto page eighteen, and the hero and his associates haven't even set sail yet.
Of course, I also have to admit that I'm a bit nervous. I have no only the vaguest idea of how the story is going to proceed once Harald and company set sail. So I currently feel like I'm glibly writing my way off the edge of a cliff, so to speak. But I do take some comfort in the knowledge that when I originally started thinking about the story, I only had the first couple scenes planned and a very basic premise for the rest of the story. And since I've started writing, I've already developed that kernel into the seven "chapters" I've written so far, and I have a good grasp of the contents of at least three more chapters. So hopefully, the rest will come as I progress just like the current material has slowly developed.
But more importantly, I've rediscovered my love of writing fiction. I haven't felt this excited about a story I was working on since I tried to work on the series of stories surrounding my characters Keylar and Amira. That was back just before Zech and I broke up (the break up that influenced my choice to abandon that story). Here I am, eight years later, and I'm feeling quite accomplished. Who knows, maybe I'll eventually be able to "rediscover" Keylar's story and return to it. I've always felt sad that I could never get myself back to a point where I could continue it. But in the meantime, I'm happy with my current project. Here's to hoping things continue to go in such a positive direction.