Dear readers,
I think it’s time for me to take a bit of a vacation. Some of my words are misunderstood, which is clear to me thanks to “anonymous” and his or her not so nice criticism of one of my posts. Honestly, I wasn’t aware that anyone but my friends and a few other people were reading this but perhaps the readership is bigger than I’d thought. I joke around a lot but the people who don’t know me might not understand that I’m JOKING.
I think it’s sad that my posts on this blog will become dull and lifeless. That is what will happen thanks to anonymous posters. Posting anonymously allows someone to be mean, hurtful, or inappropriately blunt. Other members of this group have been bothered by anonymous comments in the past because obviously anonymous comments are rarely nice. If you think I’m a loose cannon then don’t work with me. There’s no need, however, to publicly make a comment (anonymous no less) about my career. Write to me personally if you’d like me to know something. Sign your name at the bottom.
I would now like everyone to know that I DO appreciate ALL of my current publishers AND past publishers. I highly respect my editors and designers. My books would NOT be what they are without them! There’s nothing more wonderful than being able to bounce ideas off of someone… to have someone help shape rough ideas… to have a whole team of people working and caring about YOUR book! I love publishing so much because I love the people I work with. Without the people behind the scenes my books wouldn't exist.
Perhaps the poster is right. Perhaps I’ve committed career suicide by publicly announcing that one of my books is going OP. Only time will tell. Perhaps I don't want to make books anymore anyway. I put SO much effort into what I'm doing. Late nights, no sleep, no food, teary eyed because the pressure is too much... on blood pressure medication before the age of 30 because I'm too worked up all the time. Being an author is HARD. I hate public speaking but yet I'm supposed to do it to keep my books in print. I get nauseus just thinking about speaking in front of people! I don't know how often I've gone to bed at 6 am because of a deadline yet not be able to sleep because I don't have enough money to pay the rent! I wish people could understand the pressure we authors and illustrators are under and give us a little leway. We make mistakes. We post things on blogs that we shouldn't.
Regardless, Mr. or Ms. Anonymous, you have won.
meghan
20 comments:
No, no, no, no, no! I don't think I've posted a comment to you before (definitely not Anonymously), but I have to convince ya to change your mind. One of the things I love about blogging...particularly the BRG blog...is that I can hear the ups and downs that other authors or illustrators go through so I know I'm not the only one.
Anonymous Sux...Meghan Rox...come on back!
- Jay
Meghan you have more fortitude then can be derailed by an anonymous poster- you will be back and I will always support your posts. The myth of chidren's book creators lolling around in sunny tea rooms, padding their tender posteriors with the fan letters and royalty checks that pour through the mail slot is a myth I'd prefer to see busted. Anyonymous has never felt the despair of a book going out of print, and the lack of ceremony or sympathy that only sharpens the sting. I love this blog for its honesty about a difficult business. And your writing is a big part of that.
Yes, you can't stop! I love reading your posts, and although sometimes I think you can be a bit impulsive (like THIS post, for example!), I think it's important for your voice to be heard, and the Blue Rose Girls just wouldn't be the same without you. So please, don't stop! Don't take a vacation!
Ditto... I really have enjoyed reading your posts, from the fun YouTube videos to the nitty gritty of being a creator of children's books as a living.
It never ceases to amaze me how many blog readers will use the Anonymous option to make nasty remarks; it's sheer cowardice. And then how many blog readers seem to forget that the people *writing* the blogs are real people, too, with feelings that can be hurt.
I'm a pretty thin-skinned person, so I recognize the temptation to let some nasty comments drive one to not post at all. But I sincerely hope that you can regroup and continue to share your stories with us and screen/delete those questionable anonymous comments.
I hope you don't give way to anonymous, meghan; hang in there.
I agree. I love how honest your posts are.
Why shouldn't you post a form letter (hardly top secret) and your reaction to it? What author ISN'T upset (heartbroken isn't putting it too strongly) when a book goes out of print?
It seems incredibly bizarre to me that some people think authors have no right to complain. As though we be thanking God fasting that we're lucky enough to have our books published (at about 8 cents an hour by the time the hours spent are divided into the sums earned)....yes, we are lucky; but that doesn't mean it isn't hard and that we don't have a right to complain sometimes!!!
Please don't let Mr. or Ms. Anonymous influence what you say! And doesn't the fact that the person posted anonymously show that even she or he is ashamed of the post? The people who wrote the form letter & the anonymous post should be apologizing & ashamed....and taking back THEIR words.
What kind of coward writes an anonyous post anyway?
Please keep posting Meghan!
I meant to say "we should be" not "we be."
Yes Meghan, don't leave us, you are a breath of fresh air!!
I hear what the anonymous poster was saying. Maybe they have a good reason for posting anonymously and had good intentions with the post and were trying to be helpful.
But I think just as they have a right to make their opinion known, so do you, and it is particularly important to do this as a freelancer, who doesn't work in an office where they can talk over the ups and downs of their job with their coworkers.
I should add too that I am constantly amazed and impressed by what great relationships you have with your editors, I think maybe those out there that don't know you personally don't get to hear some of the other side of your experiences.
I should add that I don't AGREE with the anon post, I think you have every right to express your feelings about the way you were told such terrible, heart breaking news. I just meant that I think the web should be a form for everone to express their opinion and debate them in a civil way...
Thanks guys for your support! It means a lot to me that you enjoy reading what I have to say.
I do think I have great relationships with my editors and I don't often talk about that. Maybe I should, I don't know. I don't like naming people or talking about individuals w/out their permission so maybe that's why.
I do admit that this post was once again IMPULSIVE but that's how I felt at the moment. I'm serious about not posting for a while though. I obviously cannot help my impulsive behavior and don't want people to get the wrong impression of me. I don't know how my editors feel about me but I think I'm pretty good to work with for the most part. I hope they think I am anyway! On this blog I talk about the negative a lot (it's good for me to vent) so that's what people hear. Anna's right, I'm by myself all day and have no one to talk to about work stuff. I feel like I'm alone on an island! That’s why I’m so thankful for the Blue rose girls! It was my wish that I could vent once in a while on this blog but clearly the venting is misunderstood.
For now I'll post pictures and videos that I find interesting but I'm shutting up about everything else. I can see why perhaps I shouldn't have made comments about the form letter but I really wasn't serious about it! As a bookseller I know that there are too many books being printed and that there's just no room for them all! If my book isn't selling then by all means sell it off at cost. I'm not mad at my publisher for doing that in the slightest. It's something they have to do. And the book isn't OP yet, it's just not going to be available. I didn't think I was upset about it but perhaps I am. I don't know. I work too hard and the books don't last. Perhaps that is a sad thing. I had laughed about it when I got the letter but maybe I don't really think it's funny.
meghan
Meghan,
I hope you'll find a way to navigate past the shoals of the anonymous poster... and find joy in open water again.
Hang in there!
You're not misunderstood by most. Don't let "anonymous" win. What I found so appealing about this blog is that it deals with the realities of the business. We get to hear things we don't hear elsewhere. We tend to think once we get that first contract, then things will take off. But the reality is that doesn't always happen. It's still hard work. Books do go out of print. And it is sad. And I still want to hear about it.
gail
Hi Meghan,
I don't know what anonymous said and I don't care to know what someone who can't say what they mean out in the open thinks. That is a person without character. I do recall your post about Show Dogs goin op. I love how candid you are - you say what we all feel. You have great character and are an inspiration.
But darling, if you say Mr/Mrs Anonymous has won, you are wrong. You have surrendered and that is a whole different thing. Put your white flag away and come on back.
Karen
Meghan!
Please keep posting. You've got groupies, baby. :)
I agree with all said above. I have learned so much from your posts, good and bad. It's valuable information and I'm so thankful that you share.
Best wishes,
e
dulemba.com
I'm a fellow author-illustrator. I wanted to let you know that I linked to your post and commented regarding it on my blog at http://artandwords.com/journal/.
I feel badly that you feel so burned by it all!
-- kris waldherr
Some of us post anonymously simply because we don' t know how to do it any other way -- not having a Google Account or a Blogger account. And what the heck does "other" mean anyway?
So I click Anonymous and try to remember to sign something at the bottom of the message. I imagine others have the same problem.
Meghan, anybody who doesn't understand your perfectly normal reaction to a form letter informing you that your book is OP is obviously a rank beginner in this field. The rest of us have been there, done that, bought the t-shirt.
Oh, and at least you got a letter. Some writers only find out their book is no longer available when people write and ask why they can't buy a copy of your book.
(Ask me how I felt when my book went out of stock right after publication and there were no copies right when award committees were requesting copies? and libraries were trying to purchase it?)
-librarian, writer, mom
Okay, you have me trumped! Not having the books available after an award must be a nightmare.
I was posting "anonymous" for a while because I couldn't remember my darn password! I figured it out so Gloria is back. As long as a name is at the bottom then it's not anonymous in my book.
I want to thank you all for your kind words. It really means a lot! I don't feel so alone and potentially crazy anymore.
meghan
Yes, I have no problem with people posting "anonymously" but then signing their name at the bottom. When we first started the blog we discussed whether to allow anonymous comments at all, and we decided to allow it so that people who didn't have blogger or google accounts could still comment.
Hi Meghan...found your post via Bruce's recent blog post about rough waters (I'm in there, too)...I can completely sympathize. Coincidentally, the post of mine that Bruce refers to in "Rough Water" was one of those impulsive, pseudo-funny (or so I though) rants that come out when something is bugging you and needs to be let out...and in response, I got flamed by Mr. or Ms. Anonymous. What a horrible feeling. I also felt like I wanted to quit blogging!
I did, for about a week, but hang in there...I found that the post that had made me feel so awful ended up prompting a whole new creative arm of our blog, and now, voila, we have Toon Thursday--I had this vague idea of expressing my frustrating for the anonymous poster via cartoon means, but that small seed of aggravation and resentment fortunately became something more constructive! Good luck.
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