Letting Go ...

This week I finished the final proof of Finding Felicity, so the next time I see it, it will be in published form.  I have never worked so hard and I've never felt so satisifed.  I can hardly wait to come home to a box of paperbacks waiting to be opened - I'm tearing up a bit just thinking about holding a copy in my hand.  Sometimes, I find myself smiling and I'm sure people at the office are wondering what's happening.  Other times, I am seized by a fit of anxiety about reviews and how it will be received.  Will readers enjoy it?  How will people react to it?

Those are things that I can't control.  I wrote Finding Felicity a long time ago, and it is deeply rewarding to know that in a matter of days, it will released out into the world.  Now, the characters and the story will have their own life in the hands of readers. 

My task now is simply to breathe, surround it with love, and let it go.

Book Journal: Emily Giffin's Love the One You're With

I started reading Love the One You're With last Friday and found I couldn't stop reading, so I finished it on Sunday afternoon.  Of course, I should have been writing!  Still, having been so focused on my own writing of late, reading has been on the back burner, and I was eager to just relax and read.  Here's what I want to mention:

• Whenever I read, I look for a Savory Sentence.  Alas, I couldn't find one here.  Please comment if you think I missed it.
• Having moved to the South myself from Toronto via Los Angeles, I share Ellen's observations about Southern phrases.  Bless her heart!  It really does come across as insincere to those of us from other regions of the country.  What, exactly, does it mean?!
• I loved so much about this book.  Mostly, I loved Leo.  With all his flaws and committment phobia, I found him to be the most authentic character in the story.  The most true to himself.  That he reminds me of an ex-boyfriend might have something to do with my affection for him.  I don't think I could be friends with Ellen; even now, I am not convinced that this is a woman who knows herself and what she really wants.  Having lost my own mother too soon, I could definitely relate to Ellen and her confusion. Losing a mother, or father, early in life leaves a void in so many ways.  Still, Ellen seems to have simply have taken the path of least resistance, instead of proactively creating her life.  Emily Giffin is a gifted author - this is the first book of hers that I have read and will not be the last.  Her pacing is excellent, her characterization spot on, and I was thoroughly entertained by her observations of society, friendships, and relationships.  I could have done without the occasional expletive.  In the end, the point of the book rings true ... love the one you're with.
• Would I recommend this book to a friend?  YES!

Life, Liberty and Finding Felicity

The fireworks have faded and the 4th of July festivities are coming to a close. I find myself thinking about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. What is it about the pursuit of happiness? What keeps us always striving for more ... of something?  What if, instead, happiness is everywhere, all around us, just waiting to be found? What if happiness really is a choice?  I think it is that simple.  Pursuing happiness leaves us constantly chasing for something that is just out of reach.  Choosing to see, to be, the happiness - the love and the beauty - that surrounds us all the time and is always present is so much simpler than persistent pursuit. 

So here's to life, liberty, fireworks and Finding Felicity.  I hope you enjoyed the holiday!