That would be excellent

         




I've been a very bad blogger this year, mainly because of this, of course. But G's treatments are now done, and we're working toward getting our life back to our "new normal." But first, we're moving apartments this week and packing is exhausting!

As always happens, while packing I've been finding forgotten things, like this letter Grace had sent me back when we were both seniors in high school. I had brought this with me from my parents' house in California a while back because I wanted to quote some of the letter in a talk I was giving, I think.

In it, we talked about boys, of course. I had asked her to send me a boyfriend, so she sent me this guy:

Cute, huh? She named him Roger.

And here are a few snippets from the letter:

"I'm going to illustrate children's books, y'know. That would be so cool. One day when we're all grown up, you'll see in a book store: Illustrated by Grace P. Lin. That would be excellent."

and:

"I wish I could show you my portfolio. Then you could tell me if you think I'm talented. Or then you could lie to me and tell me you think I'm the bestest artist in the world and of course I will make it into RISD."

I wonder if Grace has the letter I wrote back to her. But I'm sure I said something like:

I think you're talented, Grace! You are the bestest artist in the world, you will make it into RISD, and you will become a famous children's book author and illustrator.

See, I can predict the future!

**edited to add**
For those of you who don't know the story of how Grace and I met, you can read more about it here.

$ and writing

I'm really curious about this:

1. Has anyone ever supported you financially or given you money so you could write/paint?

2. Have you had any books published?

and I hope lots of people answer in the comments, with as much or as little detail as you want. I'll post the numbers next week.

My own most productive writing time was when I had three months of severance pay from Fidelity. Being able to write without having a job OR worrying about money was amazing! I finished a book, a good book. Since then, my mother has lent and sometimes given me money a few times, and I'm grateful--but sporadic help is not the same thing as being supported! Worry about money is still underneath everything....and when you don't have enough to pay the rent, you really can't think about anything else. At least, I couldn't.

I put it in the past tense because between babysitting and freelancing, I'm making enough now to feel cautiously confident. I hope it's not bad luck to say that! And thank you Grace! (The babysitting was Grace's idea and it's worked out really well: I owe her a special thank you because the first TWO times she suggested it I thought it was a terrible idea. But she persisted.)

But authors whose autobiographies I've read have done it both ways.


Were supported financially:
*F.Scott Fitzgerald (wrote his first published novel while living at home, being supported by his parents)
*Agatha Christie (wrote her first mystery while living at home; her first PUBLISHED book while being supported financially though not emotionally by her first husband. "WEll, you really don't know much about _____, do you?" he said
*Jane Austen (though she worried about money, too, she didn't have to have a job -- and didn't write when the task of directing the servants fell to her! "I can not write when my head is full of mutton and orange wine," she wrote to her sister Cassandra, who normally took care of the housekeeping)

Supported others:
*Louisa May Alcott (supported her parents, starting when she was a teenager)
*Frances Hodgson Burnett (started writing to support her children after her husband died)
*E.Nesbit (started writing to support her husband and children)

Yes, all these people are in the past -- but I don't know about modern authors finances, no one talks about it. Let's hope WE (all of us who post and comment on this blog) can be frank about it!