The Mother in-Law’s Manual

Because this is my sixth book, I now have enough experience to see that there are three moments in the life of book writing that always stand out for me. The first is when it becomes clear that there really IS a book in me; I really AM going to write it.  When I hit the inflection point that moves me from thinking about it and/or playing with it to knowing, deeply knowing, that I am going forward, it is a bit terrifying but at the same time, deeply satisfying.  I am never sure it will grow into the vision I have of what I want to see in the end, but I love knowing that, no matter, I am going to try.

The second moment is really the very best one in the whole process.  Once the book is finished, I have to sell it to a publisher.  The moment when a publisher says YES and then sends a contract is a great high.  When a piece of work is validated by an outside authority, it gives it external authenticity.  Should one need an external stamp of approval?  Not to know the work is good, but the manuscript needs to be published to move writing from hobby or passion to real world work.  With a contract, I know that what I have so much wanted to say and worked so hard on saying well just might be shared with others.

The final high point, which for me and this book happened on Tuesday, April 14, 2009, is when the book is in hand.  It really IS a published book.  Now, the hard part for me starts.  I prefer writing the book to marketing the book, but in this marketplace, if one’s books don’t sell, the chance of publishing a next book becomes less and less possible.  Since I have a next book I want to write, I know I must work on helping to sell this book.  There are lots of techniques for helping authors sell books — ways to get a big bang on Amazon, to alert booksellers, to dangle oneself in front of the media.  These techniques make sense. I  have no idea why I find it hard to jump into this sphere and play the marketing game– but I’m working on it and so is the publisher.

I have a nice line-up of talks here in Houston and some around the country and am looking for more. I love the chance to talk about the points in the book with other women and hear their comments.  I have some radio interviews and have done some interviews with national media.  We’ll see what happens. If you have read this far, help spread the word.  Viral marketing is the very best strategy.  And help me hold the intention that this book will do well because it is a good piece of work that speaks to many women in ways they will find interesting and useful.