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Sunday, September 16, 2012

Indie Authors Need a Different Kind of Chutzpah

Dear friend James held up my book at a gathering last night.

"Someone in our midst has written a novel," he said.

That's how I first laid eyes on the paperback version. I've ordered it on my Kindle but haven't ordered any paperbacks yet because I haven't planned any book-signing parties yet.

I guess you could say last night was my first book-signing party. It was a party, and I signed my book.

So how does it feel? Surreal. And anti-climactic. I had an idea for a story. The character of Justine came to me - She was robotic, going through the motions in life, not real sure who she was. And she looked to her brother. Like Supergirl, I thought. And I began to see Justine as Linda, Supergirl's alter-ego, the one who waited to hear from her brother. While waiting, she went through the motions, not understanding how to trust her own feelings or her own reactions to a world immersed in Vietnam, women's lib, police brutality. She felt the anxiety of the nation; she felt the hopelessness.

Next week is my 40th (really?) high school reunion. I need to order some copies to take with me! I did go through the motions: I looked for a local bookstore. Nada. Good ole home town. In the boondocks. Not even a locally-owned coffee house. Sheesh.

But my friends tell me to set my book on a rack and sell them in the entryway of the reunion.

I guess this is going to take a different kind of chutzpah. I'll see what I can muster. Wish me luck. 

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