Waiting, again, with four book proposals and several phone conferences later, the time has come to make a decision: Which book, or books, to publish, first. The Penny has been my crusade and my love and getting that one out first seems necessary and prudent and all of the words I could write to establish that rationale, yet these kayak journals have taken over my life. I read them often, mixing in a new adverb here and there or striking bad sentence structure written during a rant while stuck on a beach, but I read them mostly to remember. To place myself back in the clutches of Lake Superior and grip of living along Nature’s course without definition.
I wanna go back and reading the pages makes that easy. Having proclaimed these two works as possibilities doesn’t satisfy my want to hand over my new trilogy, or actually I believe a long series, of books based on a new character in a new town. Moving Tables; Jesus Walked Down My Alley; and Unwanted are fun and entertaining reads with subjects relevant to today’s society and mixed-up world on a micro-scale. Do you see my dilemma? If only I could land a champion for my work and get the whole shebang out. I have no doubt my writing is better, my wit saucier, and my stories invigorating and provocative. Then I had a talk with Ryan. He’s a publisher in California who is all gun-ho about my books, has a hybrid publishing house ready to accept them, and during our conversation, I rattled off what’s happened in the market and how not being a genre-perfect writer at the moment has conscripted me to the draft pile of, “not right now”, translating to me being an old white guy with some stories. As progressive as I am, I understand the fact of literature changing and providing voices and targets who have long been held silent, but the pill is hard to swallow. Then Ryan, after hearing of my bucolic life in a nice quiet bohemian square mile of peace and tranquility, asked me, “Why do you want to change that?” Essentially my continual paradox of leaving my comfortable recovery for the wild world of a smart-phone, 24/7 connectivity, and trotting from place to place away from my lakes, rivers and writing studio, not to mention my amazing wife and quiet moments in the parlor and the visits with grandchildren that can now be spontaneous. Why? Simple. I want that one achievement of a “national” book. One big goober through New York to rattle my bones and send me off into the writing world with one book a year – write during six months of living my life then, maybe, six months of travel for the book. Pausing and reading what has been penned in the last couple of minutes, defines the moment pretty well and taking today to meditate on this shall be a nice takeaway on a Sunday. Thanks for giving me this voice. Thanks for allowing me time to vent.
Waiting
September 15, 2019
stewert james
The Author
An author with a story. Living in a quiet Northern Michigan community, nestled into a serene Lake Michigan bay, James writes to the rhythms of current events mixed with romanticism and experience that can only be found by living the same adventures. Whether it’s a provocative story line or blog, this website will certainly take you beyond the keyboard.
Hey, vent away, big guy! We’re listening. I hope the big goober happens for you.