Soon You Can Read My Friend's Book
A good friend of mine is about to have her novel published.
When I got the news my reaction was: “Wonderful…why not me?”
I am not the least bit ambivalent about this. I am 100% thrilled for her. I am 100% bumbed out for me.
There is no question that she disserves it. She has worked her tail off for this. She is an excellent writer. She’s been nominated for awards for her short stories. She has been shopping a couple of novels for some time now. I have read one, though not the one she sold, and found it imaginative with intriguing characters and a twist that made it nearly impossible for it to be a genuine mystery story, but she brought it off. Her work should have been published ages ago.
I spent one day jumping up and down for her, and the next day feeling sorry for myself.
Now is the time to take a good hard look at what I am doing and why I am doing it. I know that you can’t take rejection personally. I know that you have to write and rewrite. I know that persistence pays off. I know that losers are those who gave up too soon.
So in her honor I will be sending out five short stories before the end of the year, finishing the zillionth rewrite of my Emily novel, and finishing some of the stuff that has been sitting around on thumb drives for ages.
I can’t wait to get my signed copy of her book.
When I got the news my reaction was: “Wonderful…why not me?”
I am not the least bit ambivalent about this. I am 100% thrilled for her. I am 100% bumbed out for me.
There is no question that she disserves it. She has worked her tail off for this. She is an excellent writer. She’s been nominated for awards for her short stories. She has been shopping a couple of novels for some time now. I have read one, though not the one she sold, and found it imaginative with intriguing characters and a twist that made it nearly impossible for it to be a genuine mystery story, but she brought it off. Her work should have been published ages ago.
I spent one day jumping up and down for her, and the next day feeling sorry for myself.
Now is the time to take a good hard look at what I am doing and why I am doing it. I know that you can’t take rejection personally. I know that you have to write and rewrite. I know that persistence pays off. I know that losers are those who gave up too soon.
So in her honor I will be sending out five short stories before the end of the year, finishing the zillionth rewrite of my Emily novel, and finishing some of the stuff that has been sitting around on thumb drives for ages.
I can’t wait to get my signed copy of her book.
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message 1:
by
Kaye
(new)
Oct 19, 2010 02:39PM
KB, I'm going to hold you to that. At LEAST five.
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I am living through some of this myself at the moment. My spouse has had her novel published, but I am still shopping mine around. I can take some pride, though, in being her primary beta reader and sometimes editor.I ask myself the same question... why her and not me. It's not really a fair way for me to ask the question, though: it puts us on _identical_ footing, rather than _equal_ footing. I'm trying to sell a story in a field that's been glutted for the last couple of years (i.e. it has vampires), and Gwen wasn't.
"Why not both of us?" is my rephrasing of the question, as I begin work on my next (vampire-free) book.
It's so hard to know what will fly and what won't, Sarah. Good luck!
The Shepherd's Notes
Combining Living History and writing historical mysteries.
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