Just My Type

The Book In You

By Mary Ellen

Journalist Christopher Hitchens is quoted as saying, “Everyone has a book in them.” But the sad reality is that most people don’t even realize it’s there. For those that do, life gets in the way, and unfortunately, their dream to write a book remains just a dream. I’m somewhere in between, having discovered quite by accident, and late in life, that I had an entire story tucked away in my mind, waitin.

So you may be wondering how I managed to retrieve this work of fiction from my subconscious and get it published. Let me begin by stating the obvious. It wasn’t easy.

When I first put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard, I thought I could complete the manuscript in one year. Then I would surely get a literary agent to represent me, and my book would be flying off store shelves in a few months. What happened is that it took three years for me to complete a first draft, and several years of revising before I had a suitable version to submit to agents. Talk about a rude awakening. I must confess if I had known how difficult an undertaking it was and how much time and work went into crafting a novel, I may not have done it. Thankfully, I had no idea what I was getting into and forged ahead anyway.

Now, for me, life did get in the way, especially when my late husband’s health began to fail. His care took top priority, and 14 years will have passed from the time I started writing my book to the launch date of February 14, 2022. Those 89,000 words remained on my hard drive for years until recently when my WH (wonderful husband) encouraged me to edit and polish my manuscript and get it published.

By sharing this I don’t mean to discourage anyone from writing their memoir or novel. It’s just that you shouldn’t have unrealistic expectations. Keep working towards your goal. Don’t ever give up.

Having said that, thanks to the ease of digital submissions, the publishing world has drastically changed. Gone are the days when you would mail a hard copy of your entire manuscript to a publisher for consideration. In the current traditional method, a literary agent now acts as gatekeeper, and most publishers will not accept submissions without an agent. Again, thanks to the digital age, literary agents are inundated with hundreds of submissions. And if you don’t grab their interest in your query letter within the first few sentences, I can tell you from experience, they politely pass.

So why am I publishing now? During the years that my work languished on my computer, the path to publication has detoured slightly, and the traditional route with an agent is not the only way to go anymore. Although self-publishing was always available, the stigma of that do-it-yourself method indicated to some that you weren’t good enough to get representation. Not true. There are pros and cons to each process, and self-publishing has grown in popularity and is an appealing option for many authors.

Last year, a friend recommended a New York-based hybrid/publisher. I researched the company, found many positive reviews, and decided to sign a contract. Part traditional and part self-publishing, the staff does most of the heavy lifting—such as book cover design, editing, and formatting for digital editions— and fit my needs with a budget I could afford. I got plenty of personal attention with one-on-one Zoom meetings and prompt responses to all my calls and emails, to name just a few of the services they provided.

Will my novel be a best-seller? Who knows? But now I have something to show for my years of work. I hope it makes you laugh, and sections of the story might make you cry, but mostly my goal is to entertain.

And for you to enjoy the ride as you read The Love Letter Ghost.