Publish Me (short story) by Leanne Dyck

photo by ldyck

Have you ever felt like this?

Publish Me

We authors meet in small groups to whisper and giggle about all the handsome publishers.

Some of us are captivated by small-town charm. These publishers don't have much money but treat their authors well. You can tell, even from a distance, that there's a real love there.

Everyone notices when he walks into the room. We all smile wider. Some of us are even brave enough to wave. He calls these authors over. "Do you have something you would like me to read?"

I see the author blush as she slips her manuscript to him. I see the hope in her eyes.

I have hope too. So when he calls me over, I give him my best manuscript. I've been saving it for him. I feel proud--like a real author when he flips from page to page. Halfway through my manuscript, he stops reading and looks at me with a twinkle in his eye, "You've got talent."

I feel his words wrap around me like a hug. 

"Come back when you're more experienced." He hands back my manuscript.

Later, I see him, his arm draped over his newest author, and I try not to cry. Will my writing ever be pretty enough?

Where all the cool kids are going...

Free

Writers on Mayne Island Panel Discussion

Sunday, August 11 at 2 pm

Mayne Island Library

Mayne Island, BC, Canada

Featuring Faye Roth, Danielle R. Graham, Pam Withers, 

Amy Reiswig, Lee Beavington & Eden Buday

Pre-registration encouraged

Email: mipl@shaw.ca

Next Sunday...

Learning to Walk (short story)

about the day I learned to walk

More...

Book Review: The Wife by Meg Wolitzer

A novel about being an award-winning author and the family's price told from the spouse's point of view.

In 1956, twenty-something Joe teaches English 202 - Elements of Creative Writing at Smith College and dreams of becoming a successful author, but he has no natural talent.

Of his own writing, Joe says, '"I'm certainly not one of the naturals... I'm the type that sits there slaving away all day and thinking someone will give me credit for effort."' (p. 48)

Nineteen-year-old Joan--Joe's best student--is a natural writer in a male-dominated world. 

Elain Mozell, a novelist who had just released a new book, told Joan, '"Don't think you can get their attention... The men who write the reviews, who run the publishing houses, who edit the papers, the magazines, who decide who gets to be taken seriously, who gets put on a pedestal for the rest of their lives... [Y]ou could call it a conspiracy to keep the women's voices hushed and tiny and men's voices loud."' (p. 53)

Can these two dreamers...? Can these two wannabe authors...? Can Joe and Joan help each other achieve their goals.

Buy this book

Published by Scribner

an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Published in 2003

Joan narrates the tale that explores her 45-year relationship with Joe. I found her a difficult narrator to like. She's coarse, demanding, and critical. I wondered why she was so deeply unhappy. Despite these character traits, Joan captivated me until the surprising, satisfying end.

What kept me glued to the page?

Perhaps it was the intriguing questions The Wife explored, such as...

-What does it take to be a successful author?

-What is it like to be the spouse or child of a successful author?

-What obstacles did and do women authors face?

Or maybe it was simply that The Wife was about an author and the writing life.

'I made myself begin to write something. Without censoring it or condemning it for being trivial or narrow or simply poorly constructed.' (p. 46)

Some readers aren't intimidated by the number of pages in a book or chapter length. (And if this is you, read Henry Eliot's How to navigate your way through the longest classic books.) I am. I'm most comfortable reading books with around 250 pages and chapters of about 10 pages.

The chapters in this book averaged about 30 pages. If The Wife hadn't been such an engaging read I would have abandoned this book for another. But I needed to learn more about Joe's life. I needed a strategy.

Meg Wolitzer wouldn't give me short chapters. So I made them myself. When I needed a break I looked for a transition in the story and marked the spot with a small arrow. I normally don't like to deface books but made an exception in this case.

Are you guilty of any of these 'crimes against books'? 
Matt Blake

Next Sunday evening...

Book Review

I celebrate Canada Reads by reviewing the book I chose.




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Lazy Bones (short story) by Leanne Dyck

Once upon a time, my husband and I met a self-made man. He told us how his family, how society saw him before he built his successful life. His story inspired this one...

photo by ldyck

She phoned her mother every week. Even though it wasn't always a pleasant conversation. 

"Doesn't he ever go to work?" 

“No, he stays home. He’s writing a nov—.”

"What? All day? Doesn't he have any pride?"

***

They saw him in the middle of the day, in sweatpants, pushing a shopping cart from cereal boxes to milk cartons.

"What a life. He doesn't even work," one clerk said.

The other replied, "I'd do the same if I had a beautiful woman paying my way. Have you seen his wife?"

***

Light leaked under the study door, down the hall, and into the bedroom. She pushed back the covers. Barefeet on cold tile, she opened the study door. "Are you still up?"

"Sorry. Did the light wake you? I'm almost finished writing this chapter."

She went back to bed. He joined her two hours later.

***

Month after month, year after year, until he told his wife, "Let's go for a drive."

She followed him to the car.

He drove them to the expensive part of town. She had no idea why. They came to the house she'd always drooled over. He pulled into the driveway. “This morning I received a contract for my novel. The real estate agent said she'd meet us here.”

photo by ldyck

September on this blog

September 2:  I wrote an essay to celebrate Labour Day
September 9:  I wrote a short story--Magdalene College's bell tower--to celebrate those returning to school 
September 16:  Book review:  
The Shoe on the Roof by Will Ferguson
Thomas is flunking out of university, but don't worry he has a plan--or at least an experiment. 
September 23:  In Icelandic (short story) was inspired by something my grandma witnessed on a bus.

September 30:  Do you like illustrated books? I love them too. In this article, I'll recommend 3 of my favourites.

Sharing my author journey...

Fun and games are over. It's time to stand up and be accountable.
Exactly what did I accomplish this spring and summer--historically the most industrial half of the year, for me.

Woke by Leanne Dyck

Because I have a creative mind I can conjure such an amazing life for myself. I write the dialogue, develop the plot, set the scene. It's awe-inspiring, fulfilling, and overwhelming. It bewitches me. And so when reality doesn't live up to fantasy it crushes me. I wallow in the muck of my disappointment. It's impossible to see clearly when I'm covered by mud. And so I miss things -- the thoughtfulness of friends and family, the irrepressible joy of children, the magic of each new day. 

"It starts with this:  put your desk in the corner, and every time you sit down there to write, remind yourself why it isn't in the middle of the room. Life isn't a support system for art. It's the other way around." Stephen King writes and I hear him say...

Wake up. Don't be dazzled by stardust. Open your eyes to reality. Your life is a blessing cherish it.

Sharing my author journey...