The Waiting Game
Patience is a virtue. A google search will tell you that this little ditty might have come from Cato the Elder in the third or fourth century (Cato the Who-ha?) or could have first surfaced in Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales in the fourteenth century. While the origin remains uncertain, this truism reminds us that patience is considered a positive character trait. What it fails to mention – and really should – is that patience, no matter how virtuous, is sometimes freaking hard to practice.
In my LX+ laps around our currently quite active and flaring source of heat and light, I’ve discovered something interesting: patience and perseverance are not the same thing. The former (in my experience) can be excruciating, difficult, borderline impossible, and otherwise not very fun. The latter (again, ime) is more about endurance, toughing it out, hanging on, not quitting. It’s quite possible to persevere while losing patience. Let me explain.
I’ve discovered something interesting: patience and perseverance are not the same thing.
As you may recall if you have visited this space in the past, once upon a time, way back when, I wrote a novel. I’ve written several and had several published. However, this novel was (and continues to be) different – in content, style, and (here’s the part) its refusal to find a home. I think of it as the “problem child” in my literary body of work.
I have invested WAY too much time and effort hocking it to agents and publishers, almost getting it contracted, and then, apparently not learning my lesson, hocking it to more agents and publishers. This has been a display of perseverance at its finest. I’ve usually got plenty of that onboard. The patience part, not so much. As the process stretched to what could well be a record-setting length of time - two decades of slow pain and anguish with an ever growing pile of rejection letters that came to rival Pikes Peak – patience ran thin, ran dry, ran out. There were fits, tantrums, vows to cast this book into the nearest landfill, thoughts of burning it, page by crumpled page, in a campfire – if and when fire bans are ever lifted.
At L-O-N-G last, I hooked up with Odyssey Books and said to myself: “Whew! That was a ridiculous amount of work for one book. Man, am I glad that’s over. Let’s hurry up and get this dang thing published!”
That was 2 years and four months ago. (852 days or 20,448 hours or 1,226,880 minutes... but who’s counting?) Because see, a funny thing happened on the way to press. A hilarious thing, really. It went by various names: Corona, COVID, SARS-Co-V-2, Alpha, Delta, Omicon, Omaha, Hut-hut!
Remember how toilet paper was scarce for a while? Well, there was an even more serious shortage of patience around here. And at a certain point, even perseverance was going into hiding. Expectations were abandoned. Disappointment crested. The proverbial towel was in hand, ready to be tossed into the ring.
So it was with a certain amount of restrained excitement, qualified relief, and a hint of doubt, that I read a message from my publisher last week that said, in effect, “We’re ready to move forward and publish your book.”
Beyond the lingering question of whether or not this book will ever REALLY be released, this spectacularly prolonged ordeal has taught me a few very important lessons.
Ok. More than an hint of doubt. A hefty, 55 gallon drum of it. After all of the previous delays, I’m not doing the happy dance (yet). In fact, my natural inclination, at this juncture in the seemingly never-ending saga, is to think, “Uh-huh, sure. I’ll bet you’re ready to publish it” (nod-nod, wink-wink). Having been in this exact position before – more than once! – I’m a little wary and a lot worried about getting punked again.
Beyond the lingering question of whether or not this book will ever REALLY be released, this spectacularly prolonged ordeal has taught me a few very important lessons.
First, always wear sunscreen. Actually, that’s just good, solid advice. It has nothing to do with this book, except that, by neglecting to slather yourself in SPF50+, you stand a good chance of not being around anymore when something good – like getting published – finally takes place.
Second, expect things to take longer than scheduled. This tip can be applied to just about any situation – doctor’s appointment, DMV visit, getting semi-permanent hair dye out of your beard, or teaching your dog to play the piano. So take a book, scroll Facebook, be prepared to shave it off, and be satisfied with the first few notes of Mary Had a Little Lamb, respectively.
Third, Lady Mary Montgomerie Currie was wrong: All things DO NOT come to those who wait. However, in the waiting, there is an opportunity to build our patience muscles. And that can definitely come in handy in the long run.
Soon. That’s when my publisher says this book is going to come out. I guess we’ll have to (ugh!) wait and see.
Editor’s note: The book in question is The House ‘Cross the Way – a literary novel set in West Texas back in the 1960s and ‘70s. Part love story, part mystery, it follows Kevin and Nora Sue as they grow up, grow close, and ultimately face a tragic secret together. If you liked Where the Crawdads Sing, this is your kind of read.