Sitting and Waiting

Well, it's out of my hands now. It took me three years to craft my novel, The Heart of the Graystone, and now all I can do is wait.

Today, I finally sent out query letters (e and snail) to several publishers clinging to the slim hope they might actually find my ideas fresh, my writing interesting and my lack of a writing resume irrelevant. (Hope, Hope!) To my understanding, and depending on the publisher, it takes anywhere from 1-12 months just to receive a reply to a proposal. (!)

The chance of any new author getting his first book accepted is ~0.1% Not very good odds. But better than hitting the Powerball (which I haven't won either). Given my lack of professional training, my (relative) inexperience, and my barren publishing resume, it is more likely I will fall into the 99.9% group. This is the bald-faced reality and I'm prepared to stare it down (Brownie said, bravely).

If they are interested, they'll request a manuscript, and with that will come another 2-3 years of revisions, editing, double and triple checking, contracts, rights negotiations, etc, etc, etc, before my book sees the inside of Barnes & Noble. If however, that were to happen, the chances of ANY book making a profit is an even 50-50. No better, no worse.

If I were a gambling man, this is not the kind of game I would be eager to play. But even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.

Sitting and waiting...........................

More of the Same

Well, now that the Democrats control both houses of Congress, we can expect some real changes... right?

"Yeah right."

Their leadership has already said they won't go after Bush and his cronies. If ever a president needed impeaching, he's it!

"But noooo...."

After all the balleyhooing over lies about weapons of mass destruction, mismanagement of the war in Iraq, illegal NSA wiretapping, etc, we get....(ta da!)...a raise in the minimum wage.

"Wait...huh?"

And here was I, believing that Iraq was the main issue on voter's minds when they went to the polls.

"Silly boy."

As usual, the Washington crowd worked another deft bait and switch grift on the American people.

"Suckers!"

Even Rumsfeld stole their thunder by resigning before the Dems actually took control.

"Great. "

Thanks for (almost) nothing Democrats!

"Stuff it. We're in charge now."

The Kerry Gaffe

Normally, this is something I wouldn't comment on at all, but I haven't posted in a while, what with being so occupied with editing/revising my novel. But I feel like a rant, so here goes.

In a nutshell: this is a big nothing.

Kerry was trying to be an ass toward the president, the president returned the favor. Just more election time mudslinging.

And now the Dems are running from Kerry like German villagers from Frankenstein's monster. (Happy Halloween!) Nice show of loyalty, guys. And why? Because they're afriad it'll hurt their chances at re-election, of course (at last, we find the bottom line). But I'll bet you a dollar to a barrel of diamonds the vast majority of these same Dems were thinking the exact same thing as Kerry. Or before the sh*t hit the fan, they were applauding his words, maybe even wishing they'd said it themselves. It's a sad comment on the state of our republic that we, the public, get to see and hear so little of what actually goes on in the back rooms of Washington. If we could only know the whole truth... then agian, maybe it's better we don't. Otherwise, we might never stop throwing up.

Folks who can't see through these posturing facades (on both sides) couldn't see through Paris Hilton's dresses. But the media, always gullible, swallows it like Ms. Hiltion swallows...well, you know...and tries to force feed the public this garbage as if were something that actually matters. It has nothing to do with the issues really, it's just finger pointing, spinning and attempts to manipulate voters.

Let's seeee...there was something else that was bugging me...Okay, I remember...I'm getting a little sick of people saying they "support the troops" but are "against the war." How can you cheer for all the players on a team, but not pull for the team itself to win? Doesn't make much sense to me. For a small minority, this type of euphemism may actually be true (Cindy Sheehan, for example), but certainly for doves, it's become the fashionable thing to say. Because it allows them to stradle the fence: it allows them to look patriotic, but not actually feel that way. It affords them the chance to sidestep criticism while heaping upon others the proverbial piles of burning coals. It's just another wrench cynical politicians pull from their bag of tricks to pry apart the electorate. Maybe I'm just longing for the days when this country was truly behind the troops. But you have to go all the way back to WWII for that, and I'm afraid no amount of euphemistic dithering, cynical soft-soaping or Halloween-masking of the truth will hide or heal the rift that is tearing this country apart.

May the one whose name I do not know have a forgetful nature!