Yes, this week is very late
again and last week was totally forgotten. For both I apologize but I do have
good reasons.
This past week from last
Wednesday to today, it has been very, very humid. Humidity and I don’t get
along. Matter of fact, I have been accused of being depressed because when it’s
too humid, I normally sleep a lot during the day. Of course, what people don’t
see is that I sometimes stay up all night because I function better.
Then there are the headaches
that I get. They aren’t really migraines but the pain is pretty close to the
same according to my doctor. So, when I’m hurting and have a headache because
of humidity, I will retreat to sleep. Though there have been a few cool days,
like today, I’ve needed a nap nearly every day anytime from noon until 6 in the
evening to just function somewhat normally. I haven’t been this way all my life
but it did start in my early 40s when I began menopause and hasn’t let up since.
Today, I had a nap and also a
Skype call with my agent that took precedent over everything else. It was a
fantastic call and The MacKenzie Clan series will hopefully be at a NYC
publisher very soon. Starting July 6, she’ll be shopping this one around. Today
book 1 is called Loving the Scotsman but it started its life very, very
differently. You can look up Where’s My Underwear? or Loving the Scotsman here
on the blog to get the full scoop on this wonderful story and the rest of the series.
Yes, it went from a romantic
comedy to a more serious book but I blame the characters for that since I’m a
pantser all the way. I started writing this nice little short story that
morphed into a novella and the next thing I knew it had a life of its own and a
backstory to match. It took me a few years to complete because I wanted it
perfect and IMHO, it is. It’s also an award-winning book that hopefully will
find a home very, very soon. I’ll be writing Book 2 and 3 in the coming months
and posting some wonderful snippets right here for My Sexy Saturday.
Today’s real subject is
something I’ve been thinking about and it was only in the past three weeks when
two incidents happened that made me think about it long and hard. One of the
incidents was where I conveyed a bit of information about an agent to an author
friend and the other was where I gave my opinion on a speaker coming to my
State side writers group.
I didn’t feel bad about
giving out the information because I felt it was based in fact but then a few
comments let me know that my view was suddenly skewed. My information had
become irrelevant and I wondered how that could have ever happened. I was
always so on top of the latest info and everything in the publishing world.
I would attend a couple of
conferences a year, read everything that I could get my hands on regarding
markets and the like. But without the face time I had with other authors where
I could gauge information relayed to me, to be truth or personal opinion, I had
little to no basis on what I had said because my information was old. About
five years plus old. That makes what I said irrelevant to the current situation.
Sure, I had passed on
information based on things I had learned from other writers previously. And that
information probably was true, or perceived as true, when it was given to me.
However, five years down the road, not so much so and therefore only hearsay
and irrelevant.
No, I am not one to
arbitrarily give out bad information. I normally give out information told to
me from reputable sources or seen first-hand. I don’t tell tall tales about
agents, publishers or other authors nor about speakers, no matter who they are
or how I might personally feel about them. If I give out information it is
usually something I’ve heard or seen sometime within a 6-12 month time frame.
However, you have to be in
situations to get that information and since I hadn’t been to any large
conferences for five years, I gave very old intel. And that is bad. I apologize
to everyone as it wasn’t my intent to give out information that didn’t mean
anything but it did teach me a lesson. Don’t get hoof and mouth disease unless
you can back up your facts with up-to-date information. Everything else is
hogwash.
Am I sorry that it happened?
Yes, I am sorry but I am not sorry that I tried to do some author friends a
solid and pass on that information. Authors, for all their time spent alone, do not
live in a void and one of the best ways to learn is to put yourself out there
at conferences, writer retreats and meetings where you can actually brush
elbows with readers, authors and other publishing professionals.
Next time, I will check my
facts more carefully and try to remember where and when I heard that tidbit.
Obviously, not all tidbits are meant to be shared and that’s a whole other
story for another time. But the tidbits I do share will at least be learned
from a more relevant time frame.
Next week, I hope to share
some information regarding my recent release and what I did to advertise it.
While my sales were small, I do feel I got some really good data from which to
make some assumptions for future releases.
Until then…
Lynn
