You by no means know the distinction your e-book may make in somebody’s life …
By Barbara Linn Probst
Once we publish a e-book, we wish it to be learn. Clearly. However what else do we wish?
At the obvious degree, we wish our e-book to be purchased, preferred, shared, and reviewed. We wish to see it on lists; we wish a lot of evaluations (and stars) on Goodreads and Amazon. However we wish one thing else, too—that reference to particular human beings who’ve been touched and altered by what we wrote.
After I revealed Queen of the Owls, I wished all of these issues—and I obtained a whole lot of them. The e-book earned awards, made it onto a number of “better of” lists. And but, crucial outcomes are issues I by no means may have foreseen.
I’d prefer to share two of those “outcomes” with you right this moment. One has to do with an exquisite and surprising reference to a photographer whose work took the expertise of my fictitious protagonist to a complete new degree. The opposite has to do with how Queen of the Owls saved somebody’s life. Actually.
The primary expertise got here from photographer Angelika Buettner, who noticed my article in Ms. Journal entitled Bare: Being Seen is Terrifying however Liberating . Within the article, I customized a central theme of the novel, which is in regards to the energy of “selecting to be seen”— the deep longing to disclose and embrace one’s complete self.
The article attracted Angelika’s consideration as a result of she had lately revealed a e-book known as I Am: Celebrating the Good Imperfect
Via a gallery of 121 nude images and testimonials that reveal the “inside and outer magnificence” of ladies ages 40 to 99, Angelika’s purpose is to empower girls (and ladies) by portraying the “getting old and ageless” fantastic thing about our perfectly-imperfect selves. As she instructed me in our first dialog: “I invited girls to put on nothing however what they’re feeling inside. These girls stepped out of their consolation zone and gave me the permission to painting their bare souls. I photographed a sense they’d misplaced—of loving oneself.”
When Angelika noticed the article in Ms. Journal, she instantly reached out to me, and from there to my novel. She learn Queen of the Owls nonstop as a result of, to her, it was precisely what she had been attempting to convey in her portraits. “The protagonist is expressing the sensation my women have, and he or she finds why it so essential to be seen, the actual me, by myself. In the long run these photographs are for ourselves.” We found that we had been providing the identical message—for me, by way of story; for her, by way of images.
From there, a collaboration started. We’ve been assembly on Zoom to speak about methods to work collectively, joined by a 3rd girl, Lilianne Milgrom, a painter-turned-novelist whose work additionally addresses the theme of feminine embodiment. Our dream is a cross-disciplinary presentation in regards to the feminine physique in portray, pictures, and story. A shared message, delivered extra powerfully by way of complementary channels.
Who is aware of if we’ll achieve success? But it surely’s the journey in addition to the vacation spot—the present of an extremely wealthy dialogue and friendship among the many three of us that I by no means would have anticipated after I wrote my novel.
My second story is a few girl named Delia Rayburn (a pseudonym, at her request), who gained a replica of Queen of the Owls in an Fb giveaway. In Queen of the Owls, the “bookworm” protagonist reveals, sees, and comes to assert her physique by way of finding out—and re-enacting—the nude images that Stieglitz took of artist Georgia O’Keeffe.
I’ve obtained many messages from individuals who discovered the e-book to be deeply liberating, however Delia’s was crucial. She wrote: “My connection to your novel is so shocking and completely surprising … I am uncomfortable taking a look at nude images of ladies and studying descriptions of them. However, I did rapidly lookup the images of Georgia O’Keeffe that you simply talked about within the e-book. The larger deal is the e-book prompted me to do a breast examination of myself, which I do know I am alleged to do month-to-month, however do not often do. I discovered a small bluish-purple discoloration and a slight indentation. I known as and had the doctor’s assistant test me final week. She mentioned it was not my creativeness and scheduled me for a mammogram. They may even do a biopsy, if crucial. I’m extraordinarily grateful that I gained a replica of your e-book and it prompted me to do that.”
Certainly, the medical doctors discovered a lump, and Delia was in a position to obtain early remedy. She wrote to inform me she would by no means have had this early detection if she hadn’t learn my e-book and been open to what it provided her.
Her story introduced me to tears, reminding me that what we do by way of our writing has much more essential penalties than what number of stars, awards, evaluations, or copies our books may obtain. There are functions we serve, as authors. Delia’s is a narrative I realized about. There could also be different tales that I’ll by no means hear.
Our work as writers actually issues. It’d even save somebody’s life.
What about you?
In case you’re an writer, was there an surprising present you obtained from a reader? In case you’re a reader, was there an surprising present you obtained from a e-book?
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