My name is on the cover of a book. It is right there under “written by.” The book is real. It arrived today via Fed Ex. In fact 10 identical books arrived. They are my advance copies of Hold on to Your Horses. The first one out of the package was given to Gleek. She is the reason that the book exists at all. The next two copies were shipped off to Angela Call whose name can be found under “Illustrated by.” This leaves seven copies remaining. These are my promotional copies. Each of these will go to carefully selected homes in the hopes that they will find many friends who will come and pre-order one of the other 2000 copies of the book which will arrive in my driveway Mid-July.
The seven books in a row currently sit in my office. I can see all the spines lined up with the title and my name and Angela’s name reiterated all down the row. All the stress and tears and despair have come to this. I wrote a story and now it is a book.
I’m scared.
It is strange to feel scared at this point. The work is all done. The book is beautiful. All the stress we put into making sure the colors would print correctly, worked. The colors are beautiful. The book is beautiful. …but I can’t tell if I think it is beautiful because it is mine or if there is true goodness and beauty in it. I don’t know if more than 700 people will be willing to put down money to buy my book.
I imagine my feelings today are similar to those of a skydiver who has already jumped out of the plane, but has yet to pull on the parachute cord. In theory when I open ordering on the book, people will show up with money in hand, but I can’t know for sure until I pull the cord. I have just a few more pieces to put into place, then the ordering can begin. Soon…
Congrats!
Congratulations! I love that feeling of seeing what I finished completed. I have never written a children’s story, but I have finished 3 screenplays, and there is nothing like holding a completed script in your hand. What’s even better is watching you movie on the big screen. That’s what I’m waiting for next. So congratulations again! And I look forward to seeing the book the next time I go to Barnes and Noble (dream big, I’m sure it will happen). 🙂
Way to go!
:Imagine Kermit the Frog here running around waving his spindly little green arms:
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy!!!!
Can’t wait to be able to buy copies for my nieces! =)
Agreed! And thank goodness I saw this post so that we didn’t order double.
Well… I guess that’s good for us but not so much for you… oops.
Also, Sandra — that fear is a good thing. It means you did what a writer ought to do, and put yourself in the book. You’re worried about whether or not people will like you and agree with you. I feel that fear every time I sell a copy of my book.
The one thing to hold on to, though, is this: whether everyone hates the book, likes the book, loves loves loves the book OMG it’s the bestest ever, or just feels indifferent to the book — the book has you in it, but the book is not you. I know you know that, but it’s a harder thing to remember than you think it will be. Especially when people start telling you they’ve read it and you get a brief moment of fear all over again.
Plus, you wrote a book for Gleek. There is not a cooler mom out there.
Yay! Congrats! Can’t wait to get my hands on one. 🙂
I’ve seen one of the advance copies, and the book is wonderful! Text, pictures, and storyline all fit together so well. I have some nieces who will really enjoy it.