This post was originally sent through my author newsletter on September 16, 2022. To subscribe to my newsletter and receive up-to-date news, musings, and more, click HERE.
I got some good news on Monday.
It wasn't good news of the life-changing variety. (At least, not yet...) I didn't land a new book deal, or a movie deal, or find out I was going on tour, or any of the other big, amazing things that happen ever-so-rarely in an author's life. This was a tiny bit of good news, and yet it brightened my entire week.
Last year, right around this time, I wrote a picture book manuscript that I absolutely loved. It poured out of me, the idea almost fully formed from the start. Once the basic premise was there, I spent hours upon hours tinkering with the language, making sure every beat and accent fell just so. It was a story inspired by my neighborhood and by my daughter. Each year, the houses in my part of Brooklyn decorate for Halloween—and in a lot of cases, the spookier (and more gruesome), the better. My kiddo, then only four years old, found these scary decorations fascinating. She had particular stoops she wanted to walk past again and again, so she could say hello to the skeletons and zombies and ghosts and spiders and bats.
And so I wrote a picture book in which a fearless child leads the reader on a tour of their neighborhood Halloween decorations. I sent the manuscript to my agent last October...and she wasn't terribly enthusiastic. It wasn't that the book wasn't good, per se, but rather that she wasn't seeing much interest in new Halloween picture books. There didn't seem to be much of a market, especially given that spooky season only lasts about a month and a half each year. And so, with sadness, I put the manuscript—which I really, really loved—away in the metaphorical drawer.
On Monday, out of the blue, my agent emailed me to say that she'd just met an editor who was very interested in acquiring a Halloween picture book. Would I be interested in sending the one I'd written last year over for consideration?
Would I?!
Yes, yes I would.
I don't know what will happen next. My manuscript may not be what this editor has in mind at all. Holiday/seasonal books still aren't the easiest sell.
What I do know is that I read over the book again before sending it to my agent, and it still made me smile. I know that my daughter loved hearing me read it aloud to her. I know that pulling a book out of the metaphorical drawer and giving it another chance feels wonderful.
I also know that in a business that is often difficult and demoralizing, it's vital to celebrate the small wins. The moments where the writing feels easy. The times when the story comes into crisp focus. The instances when a reader truly gets what you were trying to do. And yes, the out-of-the-blue emails that might not lead to anything...but oh, what if they do?
Are you celebrating any small wins this week? I hope so!
~Kathryn
Reading: I read the final book in Sonali Dev's series of adult romances based on Jane Eyre's novels. The Emma Project follows the youngest member of the Raje family, Vansh, as he tries to fix everything for everyone around him...and ends up falling in love with an unlikely partner, someone who's actually been there all along. I really loved this whole series! I think Recipe for Persuasion was my favorite, but then, Persuasion is probably my favorite Austen novel.
Watching: Do you watch "Cobra Kai" on Netflix? I was not a hard-core fan of the original "Karate Kid" movies, but this series is an utter delight. It's silly and soapy and significantly higher-stakes than you would think would be warranted for what is basically a small regional karate competition. There are five seasons of drama at this point! It's amazing.
Writing: Mostly freelance dance articles. I've been interviewing dance teachers about their philosophies and methodologies for DanceTeacher+ (the online community that used to be Dance Teacher magazine—a.k.a. my first job out of college!). I've also got a story coming up for Pointe magazine about balancing big performances like The Nutcracker with final academic exams...
Loving: My daughter starts ballet class this afternoon! As a lifelong dancer (I started at age 3), I have so many emotions! Here she is practicing her twirl:
