Waiting. It’s the most difficult thing to do well. I am not very good. I want to tell everyone to hurry, hurry, hurry – move faster, skim it, just give me an answer, show me how to do it NOW. Instead of trying to coerce the experts into faster action, I talk to myself while in the shower, while driving for more than ten minutes at a stretch, while doing a treadmill workout at 3.8 miles per hour at level ten, even while trying to be still for fifteen to twenty minutes in a dry sauna. I assume all of that keeps me from being a pest via e-mail, Facebook posting, or any other way I could communicate with either the editor (who’s all done on my stuff at the moment and waiting, just like me, for the next round of layout editing), the proofreader (see the editor status), and the book designer.
He’s the one I’m waiting on. What I have seen of his work so far has been a delight with very few problems. He has been attentive to suggestions and explained the why’s when asked. I do know how much time it takes to get a project like this done well. I want him to take his time, to check every page, every paragraph, every instance of italics, which are the bane of book designers I’ve been told – and there are a lot of italics in The Blood. They are there for a reason so each one is needed. And I know that it has been barely three weeks since I received a pdf of the first four chapters. Oh, my so beautiful! I can’t wait to hold it, to page through it, to show you how he has made my imagination visible. I also know his schedule is full — I am not his only client. I must be calm (but the EVVY deadline is only six weeks away!!) and supportive (please hurry, I’m so nervous) and patient (I want it perfect right now!!).
Maybe I should take another long hot shower or a drive to Gunnison for the scenery or . . . wait. Must practice waiting.
Is it ready yet?
TimberDarkWriter 