“Excuse me?” I asked my publisher. “I must have heard you wrong. You said 60, right, the book sold 60 copies the first month? That’s
pretty good for a first novel, isn’t it?”
“I said 6. The book sold 6 total copies the first month.”
I started counting on my fingers. Mom. My two sisters. Eight members of my writers group. Ten regular attendees of the coffee house group I met with monthly who were all excited and congratulatory when I first told them I’d found a publisher. And that didn’t even factor in the numerous friends, acquaintances, cousins, and neighbors I’d been casually mentioning my release date to whenever I had a chance. Six copies just did not compute.
A genius is never appreciated in her own environment.
THE DARK SIDE OF LOVE
I understood that an unknown author might not quickly pick up new fans, but I couldn’t…