June 10, 2025 • 10 mins
Whenever I finish writing a manuscript, there’s always this unexpected wave of sadness that hits me. It shouldn’t be unexpected. This is like my 27th or 28th book.But yes. You heard me right—sadness.Because now I’m done with these characters.Characters I’ve lived with for three, sometimes four months. Characters whose voices echoed in my head, who made me laugh, who made me cry, and made me question everything. And once I’ve typed “The End,” there’s a sudden stillness. And in the silence, creep doubts:“Could I’ve done this better?”“What if I’d added one more scene?”“Did I do them justice?”But here’s the truth—you need to let it sit.You need space. You need time.You need to send it off to your editor, beta reader, or mother, and let someone else hold the story for a while, because you’ve been holding it close for too long. And when it comes back—marked with notes, questions, maybe even a few praises—you’ll be ready. You’ll have distance. And perspective to guide you.Still… I get a little sad. Because I’ve grown attached.My brain still wants to write more scenes, dream up alternate endings, give side characters more airtime. But the book is done when it’s done. There’s no need to stretch a moment or linger more than necessary.⸻With A Deal at Dawn, I’ve wrapped up the Betting Against the Duke series.It’s been a journey.• A Gamble at Sunset was Georgina’s story—a fake courtship that turned into something real, when she found her voice.• A Wager at Midnight followed Scarlet, a woman fighting for public health alongside a handsome doctor and the complicated Duke we come to love.• But A Deal at Dawn… this one’s different.It’s a second chance romance, yes—but one that deals with what happens when forgiveness feels impossible. When tomorrow isn’t promised. It asks: what does happily ever after look like when you’re living with chronic, debilitating illness?Maybe that’s why this book lingered. Because it’s heavy. It’s real with my trademark foolishness thrown in.I want to be respectful of those finding themselves in this position. I want to tell a story that isn’t often told in historical romance. A story about two people—Jahleel and Katherine—who’ve made serious, tragic mistakes. Who are struggling. And yet… still worthy of love.It was hard to write.But I think you’re going to feel every bit of it.⸻Now that the manuscript is done, I ask myself:What comes next?The summer months are my time to dig into the “wish list” projects. Those ideas that won’t let go. Stories that whisper in the back of my mind. The ones I dream about while I’m supposed to be sleeping. Between conferences, revisions, and promo—it’s my time to play again.But also… it’s hard not to look around at the world and feel the weight of everything. We’re pretty cooked.The news? Bleak.Protests are erupting. People suffering from natural disasters are being ignored. Prices rise. Patience runs low.It’s like we’re all trapped in satan’s pressure cooker. I don’t want be chopped steak. I want off the menu. Please rewind the clock to a time when we were all filet mignon—delectable, tender by nature, and expensive by choice.But I watched a reel the other day—just a young woman speaking truth.She said:“If our ancestors survived war, enslavement, displacement, disease…If they survived laws written to break their spirits—Then so can we.”And she’s right. We have survived darker days.So I have faith that we’re going to get our acts together.That somehow, everything will shake out.That it’s going to be okay again.So take a deep breath with me—Everything is going to be all right.⸻But in the meantime, preserve your mental health.Hold close the things and people you cherish.And let yourself rest. You’ve done a lot.You are doing a lot.And then—when you’re ready—start asking:What’s next?What project is going to consume you for the next three or four months?Which story or idea wakes you wake up early?What is it that keeps tugging at your thoughts like a child in want of attention. It needs nurturing.It needs your love to be poured in to it. lt cries out for your energy, and clutches at your heart until it’s finally complete.That’s where I’m headed.That’s what I’m looking for right now.Even while revising, promoting, preparing for launch days—I’m dreaming of that next passion.And speaking of what’s next—I’ve been talking a lot about Fire Sword and Sea. We’re getting closer to a cover reveal, and I can’t wait for you to see how that story’s shaped up . It’s going to be a wild ride.⸻So, I’ll leave you with this:Don’t give up.Find that passion.Let it move you, stretch you, heal you.And when it shows up? Let it consume you—in the best possible ways.Books to help us let go are:.css-j9qmi7{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:2.8rem;width:100%;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:start;justify-content:start;padding-left:5rem;}@media only screen and (max-width: 599px){.css-j9qmi7{padding-left:0;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;}}.css-j9qmi7 svg{fill:#27292D;}.css-j9qmi7 .eagfbvw0{-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:#27292D;}
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome to the Rite of Passage with Vanessa Riley, the
podcast where storytelling meets passion in every page turns into
a new adventure. I'm your host, Vanessa Riley, and together
we'll dive deep into untold histories, reflect on current events
through a historical lands, share behind the scenes writing insights,
(00:29):
and explore the ups and downs of the author's journey
from rich historical novels to unforgettable characters to pop culture's
intrusion on the written word. Hey, we're going to explore
it all. So grab your pen, your notebook, and let's
begin our journey through the written word. Let's start your
(00:54):
right of passage. How to let go. Whenever I finish
writing a manuscript, there's always this unexpected wave of sadness
that hits me. It shouldn't be unexpected. I mean, this
is kind of like twenty seven and twenty eight books.
(01:15):
But yes, you heard me, sadness, because now I'm done
with these characters, characters I've lived with for three, sometimes
four months, characters whose voices echoed in my head, who
made me laugh, who made me cry and made me
question everything, And once I've typed the end, there's a
(01:40):
sudden stillness, and in the silence, creeped outs. Could I've
done this better? What if I've added one more scene?
Did I do them justice? But here's the truth. You
(02:02):
need to let go. You need to let it sit.
You need space, you need time. You need to send
it off to your editor or beta reader or mother.
Let's someone else hold the story for a while because
(02:24):
you've been holding it close for too long. And when
it comes back, marked with notes, questions, maybe even a
few praises, you'll be ready. You'll have distance and perspective
to guide you. Still I get a little sad because
(02:44):
I've grown attached. My brain still wants to write more scenes,
dream up alternative endings, give side characters more airtime. But
the book is done. When it's done, there's no need
to stretch a moment or linger more than necessary. With
a deala don I've wrapped up the Betting against the
(03:07):
Duke series. It's been a journey. A Gamble at Sunset
was Georgina's story, a fake courtship that turned into something
real when she found her voice. A wager at Midnight
followed Scarlet, a woman fighting for public health alongside a
handsome doctor. I'm the complicated duke, We've come to love,
(03:34):
but adala don. This one's different. It's a second chance romance,
but one that deals with what happens when forgiveness feels impossible,
when tomorrow isn't promised. It asks what does happily ever
(03:55):
look like when you're living with chronic, debilitating illness. Maybe
that's why this book lingered, because it's heavy, it's real, with,
of course, my trademark foolishness thrown in. I want to
be respectful to those finding themselves in this position. I
(04:19):
want to tell a story that isn't often told in
historical romance, a story about two people, Jalil and Catherine,
who've made serious, tragic mistakes, who are struggling and yet
still worthy of love. It was hard to write, but
(04:40):
I think you're going to feel every bit of it.
Now that manuscript is done, I ask myself what comes next.
The summer months are my time to dig into the
wishless projects, those ideas that won't let go, stories that
whisper in the back of my mind, the ones I
(05:02):
dream about while I'm supposed to be sleeping Between conferences,
revisions and promo. It's my time to play again. But
it's also hard not to look around at the world
and feel the weight of everything. We're pretty cooked the news.
(05:26):
It's bleak, protests are erupting, people suffering from natural disasters
are being ignored. Prices rise, patience runs low. It's like
we're all trapped in Satan's pressure cooker. I don't want
to be chopstak. I went off the menu. Please rewind
(05:49):
the clock to a time when we were all filet mignon, delectable,
tender by nature, and expensive by choice. But I watched
Areel the other day, just a young woman speaking the truth.
She said, if our ancestors survived war, enslavement, displacement, disease,
(06:10):
if they survived laws written to break their spirits, then
so can we. And she's right. We have survived darker days.
So I have faith that we're going to get our
acts together, that somehow everything will shake out, that it's
going to be okay again. So take a deep breath
(06:33):
with me. Everything is going to be all right. But
in the meantime, preserve your mental health, hold close the
things and people you cherish, and let yourself rest. You've
(06:54):
done a lot, you are doing a lot, and then
when you're ready start asking what's next? What project is
going to consume you for the next three to four months,
Which story or idea wakes you up early? What is
(07:19):
it that keeps tugging at your thoughts like a child
in want of attention? It needs nurturing, It needs your
love to be poured into it. It cries out for
your energy and clutches at your heart until it's finally complete.
That's where I'm headed, That's what I'm looking for right now.
(07:44):
Even while revising, promoting, preparing for launch days, I'm dreaming
of that next passion. And speaking of what's next, I've
been talking a lot about fire Sword, and see we're
getting close to a cover reveal, and I can't wait
for you to see how that story shaped up. It's
(08:06):
going to be a wild ride. So I'll leave you
with this. Don't give up. Find that passion. Let it
move you, stretch you, heal you, and when it shows up,
let it consume you in the best possible ways. Books
(08:32):
to help us let Go are still writing The Perils
and Pleasures of a Creative Life by Danny Shapiro. It's
a deeply personal meditation on writing, grief, self doubt, and
creative renewal. Bird by Bird by Anne LaMotte. This is
(08:52):
a classic that embraces imperfection, persistence, and yes, the sadness
and relief of finishing a ordinary Notes by Christina Sharp
is not a traditional writing craft book, but it's deeply reflective,
exploring memory, loss, black life, and the power of language.
(09:15):
It's perfect for writers processing the emotional weight of finishing something.
This week, I'm highlighting Detroit Book City through their website
and bookshop dot org. Help me build momentum for Fire,
Sword and Sea. Spread the word and pre order this
(09:35):
disruptive narrative about female pirates in the sixteen hundreds, The
Sweeping Saga, releases January thirteenth, twenty twenty six. The link
on my website shows retailers large and small who have
set up preorders. Show notes include a list of the
(09:57):
books mentioned in this broadcast. You can find my notes
on substack or on my website Vanesseriley dot com under
the podcast length in the about tab. Enjoying the vibe,
go ahead and like this episode and subscribe to write
a passage so you never miss a moment. Thank you
(10:20):
for listening. Hopefully you'll come again. This is Vanessa Riley
Welcome to the Rite of Passage with Vanessa Riley, the
podcast where storytelling meets passion in every page turns into
a new adventure. I'm your host, Vanessa Riley, and together
we'll dive deep into untold histories, reflect on current events
through a historical lands, share behind the scenes writing insights,
(00:29):
and explore the ups and downs of the author's journey
from rich historical novels to unforgettable characters to pop culture's
intrusion on the written word. Hey, we're going to explore
it all. So grab your pen, your notebook, and let's
begin our journey through the written word. Let's start your
(00:54):
right of passage. How to let go. Whenever I finish
writing a manuscript, there's always this unexpected wave of sadness
that hits me. It shouldn't be unexpected. I mean, this
is kind of like twenty seven and twenty eight books.
(01:15):
But yes, you heard me, sadness, because now I'm done
with these characters, characters I've lived with for three, sometimes
four months, characters whose voices echoed in my head, who
made me laugh, who made me cry and made me
question everything, And once I've typed the end, there's a
(01:40):
sudden stillness, and in the silence, creeped outs. Could I've
done this better? What if I've added one more scene?
Did I do them justice? But here's the truth. You
(02:02):
need to let go. You need to let it sit.
You need space, you need time. You need to send
it off to your editor or beta reader or mother.
Let's someone else hold the story for a while because
(02:24):
you've been holding it close for too long. And when
it comes back, marked with notes, questions, maybe even a
few praises, you'll be ready. You'll have distance and perspective
to guide you. Still I get a little sad because
(02:44):
I've grown attached. My brain still wants to write more scenes,
dream up alternative endings, give side characters more airtime. But
the book is done. When it's done, there's no need
to stretch a moment or linger more than necessary. With
a deala don I've wrapped up the Betting against the
(03:07):
Duke series. It's been a journey. A Gamble at Sunset
was Georgina's story, a fake courtship that turned into something
real when she found her voice. A wager at Midnight
followed Scarlet, a woman fighting for public health alongside a
handsome doctor. I'm the complicated duke, We've come to love,
(03:34):
but adala don. This one's different. It's a second chance romance,
but one that deals with what happens when forgiveness feels impossible,
when tomorrow isn't promised. It asks what does happily ever
(03:55):
look like when you're living with chronic, debilitating illness. Maybe
that's why this book lingered, because it's heavy, it's real, with,
of course, my trademark foolishness thrown in. I want to
be respectful to those finding themselves in this position. I
(04:19):
want to tell a story that isn't often told in
historical romance, a story about two people, Jalil and Catherine,
who've made serious, tragic mistakes, who are struggling and yet
still worthy of love. It was hard to write, but
(04:40):
I think you're going to feel every bit of it.
Now that manuscript is done, I ask myself what comes next.
The summer months are my time to dig into the
wishless projects, those ideas that won't let go, stories that
whisper in the back of my mind, the ones I
(05:02):
dream about while I'm supposed to be sleeping Between conferences,
revisions and promo. It's my time to play again. But
it's also hard not to look around at the world
and feel the weight of everything. We're pretty cooked the news.
(05:26):
It's bleak, protests are erupting, people suffering from natural disasters
are being ignored. Prices rise, patience runs low. It's like
we're all trapped in Satan's pressure cooker. I don't want
to be chopstak. I went off the menu. Please rewind
(05:49):
the clock to a time when we were all filet mignon, delectable,
tender by nature, and expensive by choice. But I watched
Areel the other day, just a young woman speaking the truth.
She said, if our ancestors survived war, enslavement, displacement, disease,
(06:10):
if they survived laws written to break their spirits, then
so can we. And she's right. We have survived darker days.
So I have faith that we're going to get our
acts together, that somehow everything will shake out, that it's
going to be okay again. So take a deep breath
(06:33):
with me. Everything is going to be all right. But
in the meantime, preserve your mental health, hold close the
things and people you cherish, and let yourself rest. You've
(06:54):
done a lot, you are doing a lot, and then
when you're ready start asking what's next? What project is
going to consume you for the next three to four months,
Which story or idea wakes you up early? What is
(07:19):
it that keeps tugging at your thoughts like a child
in want of attention? It needs nurturing, It needs your
love to be poured into it. It cries out for
your energy and clutches at your heart until it's finally complete.
That's where I'm headed, That's what I'm looking for right now.
(07:44):
Even while revising, promoting, preparing for launch days, I'm dreaming
of that next passion. And speaking of what's next, I've
been talking a lot about fire Sword, and see we're
getting close to a cover reveal, and I can't wait
for you to see how that story shaped up. It's
(08:06):
going to be a wild ride. So I'll leave you
with this. Don't give up. Find that passion. Let it
move you, stretch you, heal you, and when it shows up,
let it consume you in the best possible ways. Books
(08:32):
to help us let Go are still writing The Perils
and Pleasures of a Creative Life by Danny Shapiro. It's
a deeply personal meditation on writing, grief, self doubt, and
creative renewal. Bird by Bird by Anne LaMotte. This is
(08:52):
a classic that embraces imperfection, persistence, and yes, the sadness
and relief of finishing a ordinary Notes by Christina Sharp
is not a traditional writing craft book, but it's deeply reflective,
exploring memory, loss, black life, and the power of language.
(09:15):
It's perfect for writers processing the emotional weight of finishing something.
This week, I'm highlighting Detroit Book City through their website
and bookshop dot org. Help me build momentum for Fire,
Sword and Sea. Spread the word and pre order this
(09:35):
disruptive narrative about female pirates in the sixteen hundreds, The
Sweeping Saga, releases January thirteenth, twenty twenty six. The link
on my website shows retailers large and small who have
set up preorders. Show notes include a list of the
(09:57):
books mentioned in this broadcast. You can find my notes
on substack or on my website Vanesseriley dot com under
the podcast length in the about tab. Enjoying the vibe,
go ahead and like this episode and subscribe to write
a passage so you never miss a moment. Thank you
(10:20):
for listening. Hopefully you'll come again. This is Vanessa Riley
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