Let the countdown begin! (1 week)

In exactly one week I will be submitting my final manuscript to my publisher.  Whoa, how time flies!  Unfortunately I am still behind with edits, which is why today I plan on catching up.  All the same, I'm determined to finish this baby and send her off to her home.
For those of you interested, I've recently added in a new chapter to the book.  There may be two new chapters added in, depending how long this next one I'm currently working on turns out.  Since I'm sure it only makes sense in my head, this means the book will end with either a total of 31 or 32 chapters.
Back when I was querying Cursed With Power it was at approximately 73,000 words.  Now, as I'm working with it, it's reaching 81,000.
Lately, one question seems to be on the minds of numerous readers: what about the sequel?
A writer's best way to mark oneself is by writing another book.  With that in mind, I plan on starting on the sequel as soon as I'm finished with edits.  (I can't imagine trying to work with Celestria and Leal at the same time; it would be a disaster)  Yes, the sequel is told from Leal's point of view, which will make this my first complete novel narrated from a man's perspective.  While I do have the first four chapters written up, I plan on starting fresh.  There's a lot I've learned from my experience with CWP, and I don't want to make the same mistakes all over again.  I have a lot of ideas for Leal's story, and I want to give him the opportunity to show his true colors.
If you've stopped by the Facebook page, you might have heard I'm considering a prequel for the Magicians series.  Mind you, the prequel wouldn't be released or even seriously considered until all five books in the series are finished.  Even so, someday I think it would be a challenge to get into the mind of Esmour.  Does anybody really know his story?  Wouldn't he be the best one to talk about why he did the things he did?  Feel free to share your thoughts!

Anyways, it's a long day and I've already wasted some daylight.  Time to get back to...

editing.  That dreaded, dreaded word...
Lindsey R. Sablowski