I think my favorite part about being a published author is the fan mail. I still can't believe that people like the book and actually take time to tell me about it. How freakin' awesome is that?
On Monday, my Brownie troop became a Junior troop and at the ceremony, one of the grandmothers of the scouts pulled me aside to tell me how much she liked the book. (Hey! I've got inter generational appeal.) Last night at a friend's house (thanks, Michelle, for letting me spend all that money on Pampered Chef stuff) a friend who's also a Cub Scout leader, told me, "I loved your book, but I'm afraid of your Girl Scout troop." (Who isn't?)
Another writer e-mailed me to say, "Your book satisfies the bloodthirsty in me." (That was my goal.) My favorite is from a reader who said she was in a tough staff meeting and stepped back to ask herself, "What Would Gin Do?" (I'm picturing WWGD bandoliers made out of black goretex.)
I guess what I'm trying to say, is that if you love a book, you should definitely let the author know. Writing is a solitary enterprise. Hearing from fans is one of the things that keep us going (and in some cases, actually out of our pajamas and into the shower once in a while). So keep the fan mail coming to all of us here at Killer Fiction. We can't get enough of it and your note - no matter how simple, makes our day.
Another writer once told me that the best fan letter she ever got contained only two words. It said, "Write faster." I think that says it all.
Cheers and thanks,
Leslie "The Assassin" Langtry
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Go Ahead, Punk. Make My Day.
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9 comments:
Leslie,
You are so right. Thank you for this post. We love fan mail. My very first fan letter for my very first book was from an eighty year old woman who wrote, "You made me remember what it feels like to be young and in love." I cried, I tell you. Big Texas-size tears.
Great post!
Christie
I absolutely adore fan mail. It's my reassurance that my real writing goals are being met - entertaining people. :)
Leslie, wouldnt the biggest compliment be that someone who never was much of a read started reading just because a friend became an author, so she started reading everything her friend wrote and then started getting interested in reading more and more. I'm looking forward to seeing more.
I always tell my readers that hearing from them is the absolute best part of this writing gig and it's true. Sometimes when I'm in the middle of a book and I'm convinced it's the biggest hairball anyone has ever seen, I get a really nice email from a reader that snaps me out of it.
They like me! I say. They actually like me!! Whoo hoo! It's better than chocolate!!!
~Kathy~
I always do my best to let authors know how much I love their work. :)
Ah, letters from readers. Love them. One of the absolute best ones I ever got was from a woman who had read my first book while she was in a hospital waiting room, trying not to worry about her mom who was having surgery. (Someone had left my book in the waiting room, which I thought was nice of them.)
Anyway, her letter to me said that she wanted to thank me because for a couple of hours, she'd gotten involved in my book and hadn't worried about her mom. That touched my heart.
It still does.
Faye
I haven't published anything yet...so I don't exactly have fan mail. I do have a small gathering of people who say, "When are you getting published already so I can buy your damned book?" (Aunt Helen is so damned pushy for an octogenarian.)
But I will say: I totally loved your book!! And I did send you fan mail...
And Pampered Chef is the work of the devil. I'm rarely in my kitchen, but I have more kitchen gadgets than Emerill. Here, just take my credit card...it's yours.
Ok, Leslie----Write faster. I enjoy your books immensely.
I've written many authors to let them know how much I've loved their books. I've never written the ones whose books I did NOT like though. I think that would be too mean.
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