so i'm a little sleep deprived.

When I began writing my book I just knew it would be awesome.

I knew it would launch from my hands immediately upon dotting the last 'i' and revolutionize the fantasy genre and go on to produce an endless stream of movies, video games, tv shows, action figures, t-shirts, pez dispensers, and so on until infinity.

And so I wrote my book.

Then I began to familiarize myself with the world of publishing, authors, aspiring authors, editors, agents, and failures and suddenly I realized the unthinkable...
I'm not the first person to dream.
People dream every day... and probably write far more enthralling stories than mine.  And they aren't hopping on Aladdin's flying carpet and sailing away to Hollywood.  They are working on their 5th book... and still unpublished.

I took my book of the pedestal and looked at it again... Not as a creator holding his fragile child but as a stranger, holding a book that would actually cost me money to read.
I realized I needed to work... and not just on the book.

At then end of this month comes Dragon*Con.  There will be 20+ successful authors and real live editors and agents.  I plan to attend said Con and meet as many of these authors, editors, agents, and publishers as I can.
By then I plan to have developed several pitches for my book (the drive-by pitch, the elevator pitch, the <250 word pitch, etc.)
I also plan to have a semi-completed website with excerpts, contact info, news and witty banter.
I'd like to have something flashy to hand out to anyone interested (a business card type object) with the website's address.
I'd also like my revisions to be nearly finished so that shortly after the conference I can send a query letter saying, "Hey, we met at Dragon*Con and spoke about my book..."

Meanwhile, I'm outlining my second book.

If I have a point at all, I guess it's this:
I'm still dreaming.  I've just learned that dreams aren't enough.  Work is involved.  I accept that I probably won't go on to become George Lucas Jr. or J.R.R. Tolkien the Second and I'm ok with that.
I love creating and always have.

Therefore I will continue onward despite.