Friday, January 20, 2017

And Sometimes the Answer is...




GOOD NEWS!!!

That was the subject line of an email I received last November.

I knew who sent it, and I knew what it was about, but I could barely open it.

It seemed a bit surreal.

After all, I’d waited for this particular moment for a while.

Okay, a long time.

The picture book in question had gone through about 10 months of revision with my acquiring editor.

But that’s not what I mean by “long time.”

The truth is, I’m pretty sure this entire process began when I was 10. That’s when I wrote and illustrated my very first “picture book.”

Alas, the writing was wanting and the plot was thin.

And then there were illustration issues. 

The turtle character I could handle. A rock with appendages — piece of cake. But the frog dude? Now, that was a lot of leg to deal with.

Trust me, you can only hide your amphibian behind a leaf so many times before even a 10-year-old realizes that a book is DOA.

The project was abandoned. And from then on, I left the illustrations to the professionals.

Fast-forward another decade or so, and I was starting to submit manuscripts in earnest.

But the YES did not arrive.

Sure, the stories were likely lacking. But I’m pretty certain that the main reason for all of that rejection was the sad fact that my acquiring editor hadn’t been born yet.

And then he was.

Of course he had to navigate through teething and walking, reading and writing, and all the rest.

He did it with flying colors  especially that reading and writing part.

Then he spent 10 months helping me make my little book the best that it could be so that he could take it to an acquisitions meeting.

And only then...

after all of that...

could he type the words I’d been waiting for:


GOOD NEWS!!!


Yeah, it took a long time...


But not quite as long as the Cubs.



And YES! It was worth the wait.




PROMPT:                         “Never, never, never give up.”
~Winston Churchill




12 comments:

  1. Wow! This post was inspirational. Thank you for sharing.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much for stopping by! Keep creating and keep the faith!

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  2. Yay, when does your pb come out? I don't know if you know, but you won my blog giveaway. If you forward me your info, I will send you out the bookmark.
    Yay Barb!

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    Replies
    1. It comes out in the fall of 2018! Right now, it's in the skilled hands of the illustrator -- the fabulous Tracy Subisak! And hooray for the win -- I'll be in touch!

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  3. Congratulations, and see you at B&N first Wed.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, John! I LOVE those SCBWI meetings, but I may have a Feb conflict. Fingers crossed I can make it!

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  4. With havin so much written content do you ever run into
    any issues of plagorism or copyright infringement?
    My site has a lot of exclusive content I've either created myxelf
    or outsourced buut it looks like a lot of it is popping it
    up all over the internet without my authorization. Do you know any solutions to help prevent content from being ripped off?
    I'd certainlyy appreciate it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sadly, it is the World WILD Web and posting always come with the risk of stolen content. This has been particularly problematic for artist friends of mine. Minimally, I would suggest adding a clear copyright notice. You can also search for other options such as watermarks or right-click disablers and choose what will work best for your situation. I wish you all the best!

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    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. May you be healthy and happy, and rich in love. May all your best dreams come true!

      Delete