I've just finished the first draft of the novel I'm currently writing, and I've just had the weirdest feeling: I don't feel relieved at getting it done. The last time I wrote a novel, when I finished my first draft I was elated. Happy. Rather proud of myself, in fact. This time, I'm lost, I'm edgy, I don't know what to do with myself. I've made a commitment to put the story away for at least a month before I look at it again, just to get objective about it. The trouble is, I find that I'm missing my characters. Their story is done, but I feel sad not being with them everyday. I expected the feelings (while I was writing it) of it being crap and then really cool (sometimes on the same day), but this feeling of being lost was totally unexpected.