Nuts and Bolts...

10:33 AM Elizabeth Seckman 13 Comments

Surely you've heard the chant?

Nuts and bolts...nuts and bolts...we got screwed?

Or is it a West Virginia thing?

Regardless...this is a post about all kinds of nuts and bolts...

First nut...my baby is graduating...got to finish up the loose ends here...don't want graduation and off to college to be similar to the kid's birthday bike building process...the one where his dad and I looked over that handful of unused nuts and bolts and pretended they were extras as we prayed none of them were meant to hold the wheels on!

*So, forgive me for my sloppy blog visits...love them; just squeezing them in when I can!

About to bolt... Past Due is in its final edit. Wow...is that light at the end of the tunnel or a train full of nuts?

The realization that soon...no set date...but soon...Past Due will be in the hands of the readers. That's exciting, and scary as hell. Why? Because some people are mean...and they may start chanting we got screwed in my reviews!

As I read other writer's books, I try to go back and write a review...and while I'm there, I read other people's reviews. Now honestly? I've been stunned. In one wicked little assessment, someone wrote that the book's editor must have been picking his nose, rather than editing.

Huh?

I just read the book. It was good. A solid plot; likable characters...what the heck?

I considered blasting back...hunting the reviewer down...if she had a blog...go heckle it...find her on facebook and tell her she's full of crap...

But then I remembered...I'm not in elementary school anymore.

Then it occurred to me that it's an elementary fact that children find fun in tearing things apart...my kids got a much bigger thrill out of kicking over a sand castle than they got out of watching me build it. They didn't understand the desire to step back, take pictures, and enjoy the fruit of hard labor until they developed the skills to build their own.

So, keep this in mind...it's fun to destroy when you don't know how to create.

Now, I got to scoot...my train needs to keep on rolling or I'll go nuts!

(That's just one metaphor too far, huh? :p )

13 comments:

AnonymousMay 11, 2012 at 11:36 AM
I've decided I'm not going to read reviews. I've heard of some authors doing this. I doubt I'll be able to stick with it, but who knows. Everyone has different tastes. It's guaranteed that not everyone will love your book (or mine.-- Pretty sure with the abortion topic in mine, there will be a lot of people who won't like it!). Stick with what you know...you've written a great story, and a professional in the publishing business felt you worthy enough to spend money on. Can't beat that! :)
Cassie MaeMay 11, 2012 at 1:55 PM
I don't read many reviews cuz I like my own opinion just fine, lol.

And a train of nuts? Hmm... there are many things I could say about this.
Kelley LynnMay 11, 2012 at 1:55 PM
That is a great line 'fun to destroy when you don't know how to create'. So true. I am appalled sometimes by the things people say about books. Where it really crosses the line is when the reviewers make comments about the author as a person. Just stick to the book and the writing. And try to be kind in your criticism if it is warranted.
Emily R. KingMay 11, 2012 at 6:24 PM
Happy graduation to your soon!

I'm not a fan of reviews. I go by word-of-mouth from reliable sources that share a similar love of the YA genre. I'd want to heckle that reviewer too!
Sheena-kay GrahamMay 12, 2012 at 2:24 AM
Congrats on Past Due reaching final edits. Yeah some reviewers can be plain glib. But that's life. Happy for your son, embrace the future young man.

Bye! Good post.
Annalisa CrawfordMay 12, 2012 at 11:49 AM
Some reviewers don't appreciate that author is really just someone like them, who can be hurt by their words.

Good luck with your final edits!