Are all writers superstitious or is it just me?
I forgot it was St. Patrick's day when I mailed THE DUCHESS COMPETITION to one of the requesting literary agents this morning. In my defense, I am somewhat fuzzy headed due to sleep deprivation. But this morning, the fog in my head was especially thick, a result of no Coke Zero, my caffeinated bev of choice. My brain was not firing on all cylinders. Actually, it was in idle - a scary thought considering I drove to the post office.
What really frightens me, however, is that I forgot a talisman. Some kind of lucky charm. Something that would bring me the luck of the Irish! I wasn't even wearing green. Sure, I have no green clothes, but I could have cut out a four-leaf clover out of construction paper & pinned it on my shirt. Granted, the other postal patrons might think me a bit odd, but this is My dream. My book. My writing career! I didn't even bother to choose a lucky song. Why, I could have stuck my pet rabbit in the cat carrier and stroked her foot as I drove.
Smacking my head. With my first book, I played Pachelbel's Canon in D over and over (you know, the song played at all the weddings) as I drove contest entries and agent/editor submissions to the post office. I would not allow myself to get out of the car until the song finished. On one memorable occasion, my friend Kristi and I drove our submissions to the post office together & I made her sit in the car until the song finished. Oops, that reminds me, both those submissions got rejected. Not long afterwards, Kristi gave me a CD with about 20 different versions of the Canon. I think she was hinting I needed a little variety.
OK, so maybe superstitious charms and songs don't work. But at the very least, I should have commemorated this glorious day, so I would always recall it fondly after I: a) sold the book in the fiercest bidding war in publishing history, b) made the NYT list, c) rode in a parade in Times Square, waving to all my adoring fans. Hey, it's my fantasy, I can be outrageous if I want to. ;-)
Happy St. Patrick's Day. May your day be charmed and your beer green. And the luck of the Irish be with you!
8 comments:
Maybe you needed to go to Randall's and pick up a box of "Lucky Charms." However, I don't think you'll need any external good luck - all the magic is there in the writing.
Your time has come, Vicky!!!
Cheering for you!
Kerry
I echo what MJ says--your writing speaks for itself, Vicky.
Oddly enough, Canon is on my computer playlist, and I write contemporary books. Just goes to show you can never underestimate the magic of great memories.:)
Best of luck with The Duchess Competition. Can I be in the car with you when you're waving to the crowd?:)
Kristi
You can parade with me anyday, Kristi!
Go Vic, go! I'm totally with you. You don't need any lucky charms. I just remember sending my first submission (soooo many years ago) to an editor--and that thing got rewritten 8 times and never got bought! (Though when I look at it now, I just want to shove it under the bed and never see it again.)
Hey, Vicky! Just found your blog. :) And just read you were a runner-up in the Bookends LLC competition! Not surprised AT ALL. :)
I'm still planning that shopping trip next week. ;)
Hi, Lynn! It's great to hear from you. I've already set up a lunch date at the office for next Tuesday when those GH calls go out. I'm so superstitious! Now, if you have an iPOD, maybe you could listen to the Canon while you shop. Hmmm ... maybe I could do the same ... maybe I could listen to the Canon all day -- I could just put all those conference calls on mute - LOL! Now when you do get that finalist message, you must email me immediately! Fingers crossed for you!
Fingers crossed for you too! :)
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