The journey toward publication: 11/22/09

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Amazing Christmas Gifts

I'm all written out at the moment. There's no oomph left in the hemisphere of my brain from which the ability to write sproings forth. I suppose I could spew forth on more of all the feelings and frustrations of being an author who is working toward getting published...but...Nah. I'm just waiting for some responses to various queries right now, poking away at a second book, occasionally grumping to my friends, family and the dog about my situation, and doing some well intentioned, but of little consequence pre-marketing. Perhaps along the way in all of this effort to get something going, I have fried the connection my humourous glandas as well, cause at the moment I have no motivation to even attempt to write something funny. Scratch that...there's some motivation there, but methinks me is just too tired, and being funny takes work, or the right mood, or something else which I can't quite find at the moment.

So, since I'm not going to amuse you with my wit, I'll just share with you a link to some really amazing Christmas gifts. I'm really not feeling like I need anything this Christmas, and was doing the usual "what do I get for everyone else who has everything and really needs nothing" when lo and behold, a catalogue arrived in the mail this afternoon from the Plan Canada. You can buy a goat for a person in need. Clean water for a family or classroom. Mango trees, Birth Certificates for children in need! How cool is that? You can give the gift of reading to children or immunize a community against polio. So check out the site http://plancanada.ca/giftsofhope In my family now, my parents and us give to some charity every year instead of giving each other presents. I'll be putting one of these gifts in their names. Maybe a pig? Farming tools and seeds? Wow. Spread the word. This kind of stuff makes Christmas fun!

And of course, if anyone wants to help get my book published for Christmas, how could I say no? I mean, hey, if it's a success, just think of all the pigs, cows, chickens and clean water I could buy. I'm game for giving back!

manuscript reader comments and critiques

I was hooked on this book from page one. The author tackles some heavy issues with the right mix of tenderness, irony and laugh out loud humour. The main character is someone you want to know - intelligent, witty, strong and imperfect. Witnessing her struggles and triumphs leave the reader at times cringing with embarrassment, cheering with joy and ultimately feeling rejuvenated and hopeful. A terrific read for anyone who relishes some absorbing alone time and loves to root for the dark horse. Jen K.
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What a fabulous book! It is a hilarious and captivating read. The main character is so wild and unpredictable one cannot wait to find out what she will do next, either on purpose or accidentally. The personalities of each character are well developed... and I could picture each one. The unexpected twist at the end was very clever and everything came together quite beautifully. Just enough romance to make it interesting without overpowering the theme. The animals added much to the humor and the characters who own them. Very, very well done. I think the audience for this book will be quite wide and enjoyed by many. This book MUST get published. I hope it is the first of many. Go Lisa!!

Once I got to the middle I couldn't stay away from it. I actually got grumpy when other things got in the way. I really enjoyed it. Do you have doubleday's number?? Donna R.

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Okay, I have to tell you right off that I loved it, Lisa. I genuinely mean that. I honestly sat with an overwhelming feeling of something almost spiritual after I finished it....it was like I could almost feel …{ ***}(as crazy as that sounds)… It was beautiful.I think this book should be on the "Required Reading List" for new therapists. I learned a lot just in the session with the "good shrink" (an oxymoron?) alone. I laughed out loud when you wrote about how shrinks should be called {***}...hilarious. I loved the {***}thing. Powerful stuff reading about how …{***}.The book has a good flow to it, you segue so beautifully. We see Danny metamorphose from…{***}. And throughout the entire process of that character development you make the reader fall more and more in love with Danny with your use of humour. The {***}…was powerful for me. I'll remember that metaphor for the rest of my life. I'm finding it hard to explain the feelings I was left with after finishing the book....a sense of possibility, hope....that it's okay to let go of certain people and situations in our lives if they are no longer working for us. To find humour in even the darkest times...that if we just open our eyes to it we'll see that there is no such thing as coincidence, that everything happens for a reason. Thank you for writing this, Lisa. I'm proud of you beyond words.Now let's get the {bleep} published. Dianne G.