1. People you never expected to contact you will do so with kindness and enthusiasm, and sometimes with chocolate.
2. People you expected to contact you, will not.
3. Urgent Care Centers will be open in the middle of the night even when your book has launched just in case your 21-year-old cuts his finger on a broken glass at 1 am.
4. Photos will pour in from all over the country with sightings of the novel you wrote. Sometimes you won’t even know the people who snapped and sent the photo.
5. Someone will criticize your story and then say she read it in one day because she couldn’t put it down, making your head spin.
6. You will check Amazon rankings even though everyone has said the numbers don’t matter.
7. Amazon rankings will delight and/or destroy you (sometimes in the same hour) even though everyone has said that the numbers don’t matter.
8. Washing machines will leak. Because they can.
9. Sleep will elude you, except in the middle of the day.
10. Speaking to a group of high school creative writing students (daughter included) will be the highlight of the week.
11. You will receive many teacup gifts, and hope that your publisher puts jewelry on your next book cover (fingers crossed). Or a tropical island.
12. You will realize that this is the best job for you, just like you imagined.
Best launch party napkin ever!
Love it, Amy! All so, so true. (And where can I get those napkins?! Yes, please!)
Here’s to another week of wonder and joy–and without leaky washing machines and cut fingers!!
All so very true. Including the real-life disasters that seem to cluster when you’ve got a big career event. Congrats.
Love you’re number 11. Maybe jewelry ON a tropical island? Hope your publisher takes note 🙂
As always some funny, insightful stuff. Book hasn’t arrived yet and have a couple of library books I’ve got to get through first, but can’t wait to read it! And love the napkins!
I think the jewel-covered woman lounging on a tropical island beach idea is perfect for your next book. Even if it’s about a mass-murder that takes place in Alaska 🙂
Congrats to you on a whirlwind, roller-coaster week!
Love this post, Amy! So true!
LOL. These are awesome!! Yes–angle for jewelry covers on the next book, but teacups sound pretty awesome too. Love the napkins! 🙂
Thank you for another laugh out loud moment. Not that I couldn’t have made one up myself, but your funny post kept me from having to work at it.
I’m with you. Tropical island and jewelry. Along with dark chocolate that you eat before you go so it doesn’t melt.
I love it! I’m so glad you’ve had the chance to learn twelve nifty new things about writing. And I want to have a reason someday to have napkins like those. ; )
Great list and love the napkins!
This made me smile. What a wonderful list, and a great way to keep things in perspective. So glad you had an amazing week, Amy!
This was one of the best posts ever. Completely changed my idea for what my book cover should be! Can’t wait to see what week two brings.
A cover with jewelry. HA!! So happy for you and hope that the sleep comes back on board soon. I’d like a costco size pack of those napkins!
Loved this post. You go Amy. Life goes one but it’s different for you now and better!!
Great post! Sorry though about #8! So glad you’re enjoying your debut!
Great post, Amy! Laughing out loud at your book cover comment! Here’s to many more weeks of fun!
So glad you are having a (mostly) spectacular week! So sorry about the cut finger and leaking washing machine!
Congratulations again Amy Sue! Enjoy the ride! It sounds wild!! 🙂 xxx
Loved this, Amy. And the jewelry idea is great – my book would only garner buckets of water. I learned in my first few weeks as an author that Amazon is not the place to look for how the book is doing. Not that I don’t check, but definitely check it less in my second week out. Ask your agent to ask your editor what the sales for the first week looked like. Bookscan is not even close. S&S has an author portal that allows me to track sales. I don’t know if St. Martin’s has the same. It’s a great tool to ease the worried writer’s mind. I’m certain you’re doing amazing!
Oh, Amy, your book arrived right away and I read it within two days–SUCH a great read! I loved every word! And your post here made me laugh, because of course we all expect to feel like “authors” after our books come out, and the real truth is that we still have to carry on being wives, mothers, friends, daughters, and house slaves. I hope you can feel my hug all the way from Massachusetts! I’m with you, girlfriend!
Yay! Love this, it’s full of life and encouragement.
How wonderful is this! I’m so glad it is going so well for you (apart from the glass incident and the washing machine!) I’m sure you deserve it! Xcat
My copy is on it’s way from Amazon – hopefully will be reading it next week!
Congratulations, a million times over! Just had it whispered to my kindle. And just in case you were wondering, amazon readers have already rated it 4.5 stars.
Aidan
Congratulations, Amy! And agreed, they are the best book launch party napkins ever…
delightful
Love this! Congratulations!