Take that, mother nature
I didn't anticipate having to say this, but the book signing WILL go on from 3-6 this afternoon ... weather or not. Don't worry, I'm sure the Noble County Public Library has nice snow-free sidewalks!
Why The Subconscious Hates Book Signings
I’m sure some writers approach public
appearances with the confidence of TV’s Richard Castle, who swaggers into every
room like he has the world by the keyboard. Then again, maybe not … Castle
seems to have become a bestselling novelist without ever actually writing. In
other words, he’s every writer’s dream.
I, on the other hand, have to actually
pound away at the keyboard to produce a manuscript. Probably I’m more
representative. If that’s true, then most writers approach book signings with
no confidence at all. What’s worse? That no one will show up at all, or that
they’ll show up to point and laugh at your temerity in thinking you actually
deserve any sort of success?
Like most things, the anticipation is
worse than the reality. (Not with dentists. Oh, not with dentists.) Still, as I
approach the next book signing, I can’t help thinking: Is somebody going to
finally call me out?
Dude,
you suck. What makes you think people will actually want to read your books?
“Hey, I’m published!”
So
was Hitler.
“That’s just mean.”
That’s my subconscious speaking. But
my subconscious assures me every time that real people will show up and say the
same thing.
It used to whisper to me, “You’re a
horrible writer!” Finally, after a few decades, I came to accept that I was
actually a pretty good writer. Then it started whispering, “There are millions
of good writers! You’re a little minnow in a big sea. You’re so pathetic that
even your subconscious can’t come up with a cliché that doesn’t involve little
fish in the ocean.”
Other times it gets bored and
switches: You’ll never write full time!
You’ll die at a keyboard, working two full time jobs and never taking the time
to vegetate on the couch with chips and dip.
“Oh, yeah? Well, my wife and doctor won’t
let me eat chips and dip anymore, so there!”
Nice
riposte, use that in your imaginary Pulitzer speech.
Is it any wonder, then, that I hate
promoting myself? Okay, I have a book signing coming up Monday, at the Noble
County Public Library in Albion. So why can’t I just yell it out, rather than
writing some long article about it? “Hey, be there! Three to six p.m. on Main
Street! I’ll have all my books!”
You’re
pathetic. That’s your own home turf, what are you worried about? Try having a
book signing in Chicago, see who shows up there.
“You’re my subconscious, you just
called yourself pathetic.”
I
know. It’s pathetic.
You can’t win when you take on your
own subconscious.
By the time November 17th
rolls around I’ll be too worried about the details of the signing to let my
inner voice bother me. I’ll sell some copies of my various works, go home happy
that anyone bought any at all, and go back to work on my next book project.
Then the voice will start whispering
again. But you know what? I’m a good writer, by gosh, so I’ll ignore it … at
least, until it’s time to send in the next manuscript.
 |
| I signed a book for a Senator, so there. |
Book 'Em, Dano
Books? I got ‘em. Ahead of my book
signing on November 17th, I took delivery of ten copies of Storm Chaser and twenty copies of The No-Campfire Girls, and I already had
plenty of The Notorious Ian Grant and
Smoky Days And Sleepless Nights on
hand. Just in time for Christmas gift giving—to others, or yourself. I think
I’ve even still got a few copies of My
Funny Valentine around.
And don’t be surprised if you see some
special prices when you show up that Monday.
Now all I need is people, so remember
to stop by! 3-6 p.m. at the main branch of the Noble County Public Library, at
813 E Main Street in Albion. We’ll stay a little later if people are still
wandering in. Look forward to seeing you!
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All about why my writing's in a mall
Slightly Off The Mark, A Primer, or: How
Did I Get In The Mall?
“I
could have taken a decades-overdue vacation from ‘Slightly Off The Mark’, but
I’m not one to just sit idly by while I go broke.”
(Every time you follow the Kendallville Mall on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kendallville.mall) ... a mall Santa gets his wings.)
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The Three Rs: Rants, Raves and (Occasional) Reflections: Thank God it's...Tuesday?: I am sooooo happy Election Day is finally here--but then, I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who's relieved it's almost ov...
It's worse when you can't do anything to help
Please take some time to send prayers and healing thoughts to my oldest daughter Charis, who's going through some very serious health problems right now and has been to the hospital a few times in the last week. The docs are working to get things figured out, but she could use all the support she can get for the long haul.
Say Cheese For History
In all the fuss of other things going
on, writing related and not, Emily and I got behind on photo scanning for our
book project. Several people have already loaned us historical pictures for Images Of America: Albion and Noble County,
and we spent some time working on them this morning … so we can get more later!
One of the photos we have is of a
female daredevil who met with a tragic accident a hundred years ago on Albion’s
courthouse square. She was taken to a nearby hospital where she died. That
hospital later became a dentist office downstairs, and an apartment upstairs …
and I lived in that apartment for a time. Connections like that make local
history even more interesting for me. (And a little spooky.)
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