A First Draft is a FIRST Draft is a FIRST Draft!
Authors are usually so happy when they have written the last line of their book. Pressing “save” that last time is a bit exhilarating, but that version of your book is only a first draft. Most likely it has some difficulties that need to be worked out before it is ready for a publisher. Give yourself a few days off and then read your book again from front to end, You’ll be surprised at the things you will want to rewrite, replace, etc. It happens to all authors.

Get Your Book Edited
While Microsoft is a wonderful program to create in and its spelling and grammar checker are helpful, it will still leave a lot of problems that only eyeballs on the page can find and fix. And even then, no book is perfect. There is always some small flaw somewhere when it goes to print. To greatly reduce that percentage of mistakes, you need to consider an editorial service for your book. Harmon Press can provide such a service for you, but there are others around, also. The bottom line here is “Don’t Edit Your Own Book.” Authors usually make the worst editors and proofreaders. It’s your creation after all.

Send It To A Publisher
One of the most difficult things for an author to do is to finally stop “tinkering” with her/his manuscript. At some point you need to stop “fiddling with it” and give it to a publisher. It can’t get published just hanging out on your computer. Cut the umbilical cord and let your creation become available for others to read and enjoy. Recently, I had the opportunity to sit with an author as he saw his book and held it in his hands for the first time. The look on his face was priceless. You don’t get a second chance to see and hold your book for the first time. You will never get a first chance to see it at all, if you don’t send it to a publisher. So when you are ready, upload your manuscript to Harmon Press.