The Book Wasn’t Done Talking

In August I made the decision to send out query letters for the book I’ve written. I did some light research on what a query entails, and off I went.

When it came down to D-Day, I did a once-over of the small 10 to 25 pages I was sending to literary agents… and I realized I had some verb tense issues. (cue record scratch) (or internal screaming)

There is nothing more humbling than to find out that you’re human, and even if you’ve taken grammar courses, have a certification in editing, and you teach English…you’re still prone to dipping into the present when what you’ve written is in the past. Yeesh.

Hello, I’m C. M. and I’m a recovering perfectionist.

So, I read through things. Cleaned it up. Read it again. Hit send.

Then I thought it might be wise to actually go back through the entire manuscript. And there were a few moments where I dipped into present when I shouldn’t have, but more so, I found other things that weren’t grammar issues at all. Timeline problems. Repeated words. Awkward phrasings. Daylight that no longer existed. Seagulls behaving like it was afternoon when now it was actually night. The book exposed its own seams when spoken aloud.

Incidentally, I just finished writing reports asking my own students to read their work out loud before turning it in. Kettle, meet the pot.

While reading through it, I did imagine myself recording the audiobook. And that brought me joy. Hearing the words I’d strung together to tell this story was a little surreal, but also not. I am actually very calm about this whole process of waiting, because I know what the future holds. Mostly because I’m creating that future. Still, I’m open to possibilities and wonder and, of course, surprises.

Future’s gonna be okay.

Current read: Grief Is The Thing With Feathers by Max Porter

Current soundtrack: “The World Is Yours” —Nas, Illmatic