Writer's Callouses

I've always said I work well under pressure. Here with less than two months to go before Operation Life-As-We-Know-It-Changes, suddenly I've gained newfound energy to work on my fiction again. As in finishing this novel draft with the intention of putting it under critical eyes.

I had a great lunch/hangout with one of my newest friends, Erika Mailman, who is a published author, a new mother and a wonderful person. (I've just finished her truly stellar novel The Witch's Trinity and I can honestly and proudly recommend it and am eager to read her first book, Woman of Ill Fame). I really enjoy her company and realize now that she was wonderfully patient with her as I scrolled through my history of "near-hits" in the world of publishing, the lessons I learned with my first agent, and the peaks and valleys of having two books receive "positive" rejections and a couple of "almosts." In retelling my story, I realized that, though I'm still an unpublished novelist, I have come close and with persistence and revision, I still can get there. Getting back on the horse should be the number one learned activity of any serious writer. We should all have callouses between our thighs! (Read that how you will, people...you know what I mean).

So, I heave my gravid body back up on this rowdy stallion and I hold onto the reins, fearfully but with courage too, and I'm off...

Publishing is a wily industry and paths to success are far more crooked and blocked by unexpected obstacles than many new writers would ever expect. There is no such thing as an overnight success!