I Made It Through December!
For the last month, I've been walking around singing that old country song "If We Make It Through December" because, let's face it, 2005 was a busy, busy year for me, and I had until January 2nd to get a whole lot of stuff done.
Well, it's done (kind of—some of it still needs editing), but in any case, thanks to my friends/family/coworkers who helped me make it through December! (Are you guys as ready for 2006 as I am?)
A lot is coming in 2006—including the April release of I'D TELL YOU I LOVE YOU BUT THEN I'D HAVE TO KILL YOU and the fall release of LEARNING TO PLAY GIN.
Also, check back soon in the coming months for my new teen-friendly website and potential blog (should I blog? I don't know—please email me (ally @ allycarter.com) and let me know your opinions on the matter.)
I've learned a lot over the last month... like how even if the publisher pays co-op dollars, there's no guarantee your book will be on the front tables at the big bookstores. For that, you have make your friends smuggle books to the front of the store and rearrange displays (which some friends will readily do.)
Also, if you write lines in your books about standing so close to baby calves that they don't have room to kick, then you get lots of emails from OTHER farm girls who totally appreciate that. But then random reviewers will talk about how your stuff isn't realistic, so you end up wishing those reviewers would get kicked by a baby calf—just once—just a little jab of realism. They totally have it coming.
But by far the biggest thing I've learned is that people have WILDLY different senses of humor. I now know why people in the movie biz talk about comedy being so much harder than drama. Sad is always sad. Scary is almost always scary. But funny to me may not be at all funny to you. I've seen it with books I pick up that, according to reviews, are laugh-out-loud hysterical, and I don't laugh once—not even a chuckle. And that's a two-way street. That's just the way life goes.
I know this is pretty rambling—but hey, I made it through December! Here's to looking forward to an awesome January!
Well, it's done (kind of—some of it still needs editing), but in any case, thanks to my friends/family/coworkers who helped me make it through December! (Are you guys as ready for 2006 as I am?)
A lot is coming in 2006—including the April release of I'D TELL YOU I LOVE YOU BUT THEN I'D HAVE TO KILL YOU and the fall release of LEARNING TO PLAY GIN.
Also, check back soon in the coming months for my new teen-friendly website and potential blog (should I blog? I don't know—please email me (ally @ allycarter.com) and let me know your opinions on the matter.)
I've learned a lot over the last month... like how even if the publisher pays co-op dollars, there's no guarantee your book will be on the front tables at the big bookstores. For that, you have make your friends smuggle books to the front of the store and rearrange displays (which some friends will readily do.)
Also, if you write lines in your books about standing so close to baby calves that they don't have room to kick, then you get lots of emails from OTHER farm girls who totally appreciate that. But then random reviewers will talk about how your stuff isn't realistic, so you end up wishing those reviewers would get kicked by a baby calf—just once—just a little jab of realism. They totally have it coming.
But by far the biggest thing I've learned is that people have WILDLY different senses of humor. I now know why people in the movie biz talk about comedy being so much harder than drama. Sad is always sad. Scary is almost always scary. But funny to me may not be at all funny to you. I've seen it with books I pick up that, according to reviews, are laugh-out-loud hysterical, and I don't laugh once—not even a chuckle. And that's a two-way street. That's just the way life goes.
I know this is pretty rambling—but hey, I made it through December! Here's to looking forward to an awesome January!
posted by Ally Carter at Monday, January 02, 2006
0 comments
