mother nature is a man and other observations..

It feels like a lifetime ago when my co-author said “let’s do it together” when I told her my idea for a book. We started it so many years ago, and we came up with many changes, but the bottom line, women’s humor fiction, and the main story is about two very unlikely women who meet under unusual circumstances and become friends. There is a little get back plot that has a touch of humor, and then of course
Wall Street, astrology, love, intimacy, and success stories. We sent out about six times and received very nice rejections, and instead of sending out even more query letters, my co-author wanted to get on with it and get a publishers stamp. It seemed like a good idea at the time to self publish, and there doesn’t seem to be a stigma anymore, since someone won the Pen Award and self published. There are success stories when a book does well and a publisher picks it up. Whatever, we decided to go the route of, for me, the grueling process of re writing and re writing and re writing. We have an excellent editor who is also doing the cover, and now the book is going to be written in book form to be published. We have another excellent woman who is doing this. All at a cost, I might add. Then it goes to Amazon and Create Space. We had other choices, but asked a few I know who have self published and they are pleased with Amazon. I’m not going into all the legalities and mind-boggling “things” you have to think about. I say this jokingly, but seriously, not joking. This book almost broke up a 40+ year friendship with my co-author. We are as different as the characters in our book. Very much, two unlikely women who became friends at a writing workshop. She had no clue what she was getting herself into. She has a full-time job. We live several floors apart from one another in the same building in NYC. She told me about the apartment I ended up buying. We occasionally have dinner together and December 2 we are going to have a bonding experience going to a shredding place to destroy every piece of paper re the book. Thousands of pages over a 13 year period finishing our book, although it started years and years ago.
My grand-nieces 13, 10, and almost 4 are somewhat more tech knowledgeable than I am. I know I can write, but putting it all together, not my thing. At my age, I’m happy to have a blog, and on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Many women my age aren’t even on the computer, so proud of what I can do, but know my limitations. Barbara actually made the book a reality. The amount of time was endless and so were my changes. I wanted it to be as good as possible. I wanted the book to be genuine and have integrity and I believe it does. Every time I read the book, I saw more changes that needed to be made. I remember speaking to Ronnie, a dear friend who got me officially published on Interfaith family.com, We met as friends and she became instrumental to me over 13 years ago helping and editing the articles that were published when she worked there. She assured me . Telling me that writers sometimes find changes every time they re read their books.
It’s getting close to the cover being completed, and all the other finishing details…….finished. Barbara and I are still talking and while I wouldn’t write a sequel for a million dollars, I’m still happy she’s here on the tenth and I’m on the fourth in case we need each other. Still friends. Still respecting our differences.