Just having people I don't know read and discuss my book and my characters is so wild and wonderful. I wrote the story I wanted to write and it's out there in the world and other people are enjoying it! That feels like a massive success to me.
First, give yourself permission to be earnest and just have fun with it. And, if you can, find an enthusiastic, positive alpha reader you can share the story with as you go. I'll add the caveat that I've seen a lot of advice to never ever ever show your first draft to anyone, and I'm sure that works well for a lot of writers. But for me, the process feels much less lonely and stressful if I'm sharing and brainstorming with someone else as I go.
