Like a cannonball streaking through the air, the ride feels wild and cool and like it's never going to end. But it does. And when it ends, most often with a crash into something significantly solid and cold, it hurts. You may even wonder why you signed up to get on the list to take this crazy ride in the first place.
And so it goes with learning the ropes of marketing a book by yourself. Some days it flows and doors open and calls are returned and meetings and signings and appearances are set. Ahhh, the feeling of what is supposed to happen lulls one into delicious complacency. Then there are the 'other' days. Calls and deadlines missed, rejections received, and money woes aplenty swirl around like Pigpen's dust storm.
But then, something wonderful and unexpected happens that makes it all worthwhile. A child says one simple thing and it all makes sense. I had just finished reading my book aloud at our local library to a group of around 10 children and asked them if they liked it. Immediately, one of the little boys in the group blurts out, " Read it again!" It was all that I needed to hear and so I did. And they all stayed and we read it again.
That moment of that day taught me a little bit more about how to truly measure success. Thanks, kids.
