GRATITUDE TUESDAY: INDIE AUTHORS

Gentle Readers . . . and Maxwell, AND Independent Authors,

I love you, Independent Authors. You provide me with a job. I have a new manuscript to edit, and I'm very excited about it but I'm not revealing anything yet.

But you're more than a job to me, you Indies. You are the embodiment of courage––the courage required in your attempts to communicate with the world when you don't have anyone to announce that you've arrived, when you don't have that person who should get you a chair and a diet soda. You people rock. I'm proud of you all.

As a symbol for indie authors, I choose today to focus on Karl Schonborn. Don't worry, Karl. You won't get after-school detention.

In THIS BULLY FOR YOU POST, I hope I made the point that Karl's cleft lip and palate made it more difficult for him to speak to people, but this difficulty is a universal condition. We all struggle in one way or another to connect with humankind, and independent authors face that difficulty under unique conditions.

We write because we have something to say. Maybe lightning won't strike, and we won't find an agent or a publisher. That doesn't mean we stop. It means we find another way to communicate because we don't merely want to chat––we NEED to pass on the word to to the masses, unwashed or sparkling with cleanliness.

Karl works so hard to promote his memoir Cleft Heart: Chasing Normal, and I know many of you face a similar struggle. I say, Do not give up. You have something to share. If you didn't, then you wouldn't bother to write.

You can inform. You can teach. You can entertain.You can dole out words without fear that they'll dry up and you'll never again have anything to say. Your words are infinite, just as my love is.

Indies, you are part of the universal need for human interconnectedness, for oneness. You want to connect with your words, and I know it's tough. I've been published plenty, and I've been rejected plenty, too. I don't stop writing, and I don't want you to give up.

Karl couldn't give up from the time he was a little boy. He had to learn how to speak clearly, and bullies picked on him the whole time. You probably have bullies in your lives, too. These people are dream stealers. They tell you your writing is not appropriate, it's not good, it doesn't fit their pigeonhole in the market. So you look for good, constructive criticism and advice, not someone who wants to tear you down.

Karl became successful through hard work. His deformity and the bullies who harassed him pushed him to study medicine and ways to avoid violence. He's a great wordsmith, and funny, too. All manner of readers will find Cleft Heart an engaging and enlightening memoir. Moreover, healthcare professionals should read this book. It's the only one about a cleft by a person with a cleft.

Healthcare providers who aspire to treat the person, not just the disease, will love that Cleft Heart allows them to see beyond the early years of surgery. They'll see how this common birth defect influences the lives of their patients for years to come.

Educators, librarians, healthcare providers, and all y'all (I can't believe I just wrote all y'all; stop me before I turn into a southerner) can benefit from reading Cleft Heart and watching how Karl goes about promoting it. He is not one to give up, and I don't want you to give up, either.

Okay, now imagine me, fist in the air, I strike a pose––and scene.


Infinities of writing love,

Janie Junebug

You can order Cleft Heart at  http://goo.gl/MQfZ4C or http://goo.gl/ZY84Sb.

Karl Schonborn

  

Author Cleft Heart: Chasing Normal

        Love, tragedy, mystery and triumph.

"A poignant, heartfelt tale."

                Secretary of State John Kerry  

Visit -  Cleft Heart's fan page

        -   KarlSchonborn.com  

Available at Barnes and Noble, Books Inc, Amazon  


Please note that I have not been compensated in any way for promoting this book.