The Devil Made Me Do It

Being an author is having angels whisper in your ear - and devils, too. ~ Graycie Harmon

In September, my publicist (I love saying “my publicist” – a term that I wasn’t even aware existed until fairly recently) sent pre-publication copies of my book out for review. The goal is for the reviews to come out in early December, just after the book is released. One copy went to a colleague who works for the same newsletter for which I write. Last week I spent an entire day with her and she didn’t mention the book once. I did not ask her about it, respecting her right to do her job honestly and unhampered.

However, there is this thing that happens when you know that someone has your book – you want them to read it and you only want to hear good things. This is a huge risk, because in general, many people will not read or like my book.

I could not stand it anymore, and I wanted to know the truth. In short, I succumbed to the voice of the devil whispering, “ask her.” I figured if she didn’t like it, I wanted to know sooner rather than later. So, I asked her, and she liked it and all is well.

Eventually, I will run into someone who doesn’t like it, and I need to be prepared for this. After all, the point is not whether people like the book – it is whether they find it helpful. What good would it be if people liked it but it didn’t help anyone? I think my ego can stand some criticism.