Yesterday I opened an email with WOW in the subject line, and in the body of the post, she wrote:
“I’ve just finished Rose’s Will. I have no idea what to say. You are a gifted writer.”
It was not a review. It was a reaction, the kind of visceral reaction that makes it worth every moment I’ve spent writing, honing and polishing my novel. My reader honored me by sharing that brief moment of stillness that marks the transition between being firmly planted in the world an author creates and the return to every day life. It reminded me of the silence that betakes an audience at the close of a performance before the applause breaks the connection between artist and viewer.
Of course I thanked her for her kind words, but because I’ve been marketing my book like a crazy woman, I had to ask, “Would you please write a review and put it up on Amazon and 48fourteen?” I felt like a heel for asking because it felt diminishing to ask for something less than her original response, and I’m blogging this because I want her to know that.