These are my friends Bev Irwin and Liz Lytle; I met them at Bouchercon, and we've chatted on and off via e-mail since then. Bev and Liz are both writers, and both on the verge of their first contracts, so naturally this is an exciting and yet a nervous time for them.
Still, they've both taken the time to support ME and my endeavors with my first book. Liz recently read it and sent me a wonderful e-mail, which I shall partially quote here to show you the sort of fuel that keeps writers going:
"Wow, Girl! Where to start? I jumped right into The Dark Backward last night, and read from 11 p.m. until 2 a.m., far later than I had planned to be awake, and that slim book was the first thing I reached for when my eyes popped open at 6:50 a.m. when my mind conjured the name LILY – and I couldn’t wait to continue. I finally put the book under my pillow to avoid temptation and assure I did something but READ with my new day!
I am in awe of your mastery of the language, which you wield in such a concise and riveting fashion! As a fellow teacher of English and Brit Lit, may I say your adroit, deft and powerful conjuring of The Bard’s own phrases floats on the surface of the reader’s mind like a whiff of cardamom detected by a gourmand – mmmmmm—enticing!"
The amazing part is that I didn't even pay Liz for that endorsement.
But boy, was it helpful to me! Because what I learned after the publication of my book is that one's fears and uncertainties don't go away, and neither does the neediness for praise.
So Liz, thanks for making my day, and blog readers, reach out and tell a writer you like their work today. You may think they don't need to hear it, but you'd be wrong. :)
Last year at this time I was preparing to go to Bouchercon in Madison, Wisconsin. The event was memorable, especially because of all the neat people I met. I took this picture at the big Madison Farmer's Market; what a far cry it is from what people might see this year at the Alaska Bouchercon.
