Hmmph. I'm not happy.
My boss has a best friend who has just had a book published. To make it worse, it's a book based on a blog and the author has made sure that my boss gets something like 300 mentions per page in a 'my best friend is so perfect, my best friend is so super, my best friend is so beautiful' kind of way. Sychophantic, some would say.
Kind of understandably, all my boss talks about these days is this bloody book that his bloody friend has written. And the friend is getting lots of publicity and lots of media attention and it's not even a good book and it's a really dull subject and IT'S NOT AS GOOD AS MINE!!! Damn, there go my true colours....
You see, in a normal world, I'd be thrilled for anyone getting a book deal. I'd want to meet them and chat to them and ask them for advice (and the name of their agent). As it is, everytime I've ever met this author I've been given a very cold shoulder and very subtly ignored in favour of my boss, who sucks up the attention (and endless compliments) from his best friend.
Alas, this isn't a normal world and I'm just downright jealous. How did he get picked to write a book and not me? How did he manage to get such a hefty advance? Why is he now talking to TV companies? Why is my boss ramming this down my throat like a robin stuffing worms into an anorexic chick? Maybe he isn't. Maybe he is just talking normally and I'm being hyper-sensitive...hmm?
I know what the answer is. Just sit down and write that book. Get myself past chapter two (yes, I'm still stuck on chapter two).
I'm going to try and turn my annoyance into motivation.
And in the meantime, I'll try and be nicer.
Forgive my rant. It's been brewing for a long time now.
20 commentaires:
Oh sweetie. How I know what you are saying!
I've wondered for ages why no-one has picked me up either. I think I have a good book going and an incredible blog. But living in Alberta you don't get noticed for those things. And I swear every time I see someone got picked up and asked to write a book - I say EXACTLY the same things you do. EXACTLY!
Why them - why not me?
Hello? Hello? Anyone notice me over here?
And yes darling - the answer is just to write the damn thing and flog it ourselves. And if one more published author tells me to try lulu....well - their pen won't be writing with ink I tell you! It's as if anything anyone else writes has to be self-published because it isn't good enough.
Lane has heard this from me before. I'm sure if she sees this she'll chime in too!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr........
Well if the anger helps you write, why try and be nice? It's a good idea to turn envy into motivation. I have the same thing right now with people who graduate - I want a master title too! The system here only recently changed from 4 years standard to BA/MA and people don't consider you've graduated or pay you an academic worthy salary until you've got a master title unfortunately.
I'm not alone in my snarkiness then:-)
Keep writing my friend and show 'em what for. Success will be your sweet revenge. I'm rooting for ya:-)
wow! that's a rant!? that was better written than most thoughtful insightful posts are. and it was honest.
I keep writing but never share beyond the blog. Similar to my approach to romance I keep hoping someone is gonna walk through my basement ;)
get over it , realise why you're arsey and deal with it - then go write and ensure your blog gets attention. May be you will have to flag up your real name
Most book enquiries tend to go to Journos havent you noticed
Have u any mates in the written media - go pull a few favours
oH and start smiling at the boss lol
And you are so good enough
Ah Travelling, welcome to my world.
I've been knocking on that particular closed door for a long time now. I just want to write short magazine articles, of an amusing kind, but not a) being a published author, or b) a journalist or c)having a blog with a cohesive story to tell, I am getting nowhere.
I must say though I've been rejected by some very impressive organisations and received some very constructive criticism along the way. I started at the top with the Times and have been working my way down from there, but despite my best efforts the answer is still no thanks.
Maybe it's the swearing? Who knows.
In your case I am convinced that your writing is as good if not better than many published authors, so don't give up.
Still think this blog is the basis for a brilliant TV series though. Imagine "This Life" meets
"24", each episode starting in an airport, station, or whatever. The guy is waiting to leave some situation and arrive at the next, with all the stories unfolding in between.
A person travelling but not in love, in fact. And there's your title for a start.
And apart from Wife in The North (who I love dearly and who can really write brilliantly, so I wouldn't begrudge her any of her well deserved success), I too get a touch of the old green-eye.
Best just to swear a lot and keep on writing, I find. Maybe one day I'll feature in Woman's Fucking Weekly or something.
Throw your weight around, get the hump, then crack on and get it done.
The pain will help, the words will be real, it'll be brilliant.
Make it So.
What Tina said.
Aims, I'm stunned that no-one has picked you up yet! You have the best story in the blogosphere! And you write it so well too. It could be an inspiration to so many people going through the same thing.
Shame on those publishing houses!
Marjolein, the whole 'academic qualification' thing is so badly used over here too - it's just a step in the triage process and so many great people get overlooked because of it. craziness, if you ask me!
Tina, je t'adore. You can be my confidence coach any day!
Laney, a snarkiness shared is a snarkiness doubled, I find!
Dianne, I spent a while with that approach to love too - you've just got to get out there and advertise sweetheart!
VM - you're right in everything you say there. I do need to get over it!
Sweary, ah sweary - still the original and best! I think you should definitely not drop the swearing and most certainly keep up the writing. One day someone will realise what they've been missing all these years.
If not Woman's Fucking Weekly, then maybe People's Bastard Friend?
KP - love the words, love the attitude, love the Jean-Luc Picard reference.
Ben, then je t'adore aussi....
Rant all you want. OK, don't. It's fine to rant, and this would be EASY to rant about on and on and on, BUT... your book won't get written while you're ranting, as you so aptly already pointed out. But once in a while, we all need a good rant.
The book might have been picked BECAUSE it isn't good. Not knocking the world population these days, but things get picked that sell, and from what I can see (and hear), a large portion of the population is shallow. They read only what Oprah reads. They only believe what the media tells them to believe. (And I'll admit, this is making me laugh the last couple of weeks as I see people so EMPHATICALLY supporting one US presidential candidate one day and hating them the next just because of the media coverage.) They don't think for themselves, and I'd venture to say some don't THINK at all. As time passes, fewer and fewer GOOD books are going to get published because the populace doesn't have the attention span for them. Not to say that good books are not getting published every day. There are lots of them. But there is more and more absolute crap as well.
As to your boss? He's being immature. If that happened to me (and God knows it wouldn't), I probably would not even tell anyway, let alone subject everyone I knew to unending drivel about it. Just be grateful you aren't that person.
And it's OK to be jealous, too. Just don't wallow in it.
Louise, so right on so many levels. The one thing that makes me so happy is that the book has a real crappy cover and is on sale real cheap...tee hee.
I assume I am being mentioned in every second page of your book?? I will be checking in two weeks time.
Conortje, you are the star of the book. well, something like that. I don't want to a) make your head swell (ankles, if you are french) or b) find you asking me for some kind of copyright payment.
My book is about a handsome oirish youth finding his way through the trials and tribulations of living in Holland. Hope that's ok...
So long as I really AM the star and I get a free copy all will be well :-)
ha ha, hate to disappoint you Big C, but it's obviously all about me...isn't everything?
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