A Swan Dark - back from the editor

I got my book back from my editor.

I would be dramatic and say I waited to open it. But that’d be a lie. I immediately shut myself off from the world and went through every comment, every suggestion.

It was equal parts exhilaration and dread.

Major changes are difficult. They always are. But that’s the point. Not to protect the story—but to make it better.

And I loved it.

The suggestions. The depth. The places where the emotions could go further—where they should go further.

I realized I’d been holding back. I thought it might be too much. Too deep. Not anymore.

I write stories about transformation. About what it costs to become something new—what has to be given up, what gets reshaped, what doesn’t survive the process.

It turns out writing them isn’t so different.

I’m back in it now.

There are parts of this story that still feel unfinished—like Morgan, caught between what she was and what she’s becoming.

If you’ve ever created something—and had to change it—I’d love to hear what that felt like.