Okay, so I thought I'd post some entries this month on New Authors' Moments of Panic in honor of two things: first, it's National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), and second, I seem to have incredibly frequent moments of panic.Phone calls can definitely panic new authors. Not making them (I never make phone calls), receiving them. I remember the day I got "the call" from my agent. When her name popped up on my cell phone, I thought, yeah... she's calling to dump me.
Of course she wasn't, she was actually calling with very good news. But, again, I always tend to default to panic mode.
One thing I've learned about phone calls in the publishing industry is this: when someone in the industry tells you something like "I'll give you a call on Monday," it's like, yeah... okay.
Because in the publishing industry, such a statement really means this: there are 52 Mondays in a year, and I will call you on one of them.
What's worse is if someone in the publishing industry says, "I'll give you a call on Monday or Tuesday."
Again, you're bound to think that means the next Monday or Tuesday that comes along, but the person who made that statement, given the recurring frequency of Mondays and Tuesdays in a typical year, has just granted themselves nearly one-third of the year in wiggle room.
So, panic sets in.
If you are a new author... breathe... relax. 'Cause this is how it goes.
Just sayin'.
