JustWrite

I’ll Do It Myself has received its first accolade by being named one of Pam’s Top 10 Favourite Things. Who is Pam, you ask?

Pam Slim, of Escape from Cubicle Nation, coaches people on how to go from corporate prisoner to thriving entrepreneur. Her blog gives practical and down-to-earth information on how to break free from the restrictive corporate world and live the life that you are truly meant to live. As you can imagine, she has a large and ever-increasing following.

We met on her blog. It was her post in which she realized there is, indeed, room for her book with her unique experiences amongst the crowded bookshelf that drew me to her. We connected at the writer level. She then kindly interviewed me for her March newsletter. From there, we have become “virtually sisters”, offering each other support, comic relief and a gentle kick when needed, usually late at night.

When she wrote her Open letter to CEOs, COOs, CIOs and CFOs across the corporate world, I was the first to say that post would garner her serious media attention. I am glad to see I called this one correctly. This woman is hot! She has been called for many media interviews since then. And many opportunities have availed themselves to her as a result, including interviewing Gloria Steinem.

To have I’ll Do It Myself receive a nod of approval by being included on Pam’s Top 10 list means a lot to me. Pam says this about my book:

[It] is Glenda’s life story of living a strong, sassy and courageous life with Cerebral Palsy. She has written it all using only her left thumb. A great gift for parents of children with disabilities, it is also a great, uplifting story for anyone about what you can do to overcome obstacles in your life with some grit, humor, fierce will and determination. I personally want this to become a bestseller and I want to see Glenda on Oprah, perhaps in the episode after Ramit.

Thanks sis! I truly value your support, encouragement and wisdom.

Be sure to check out the other things on her Top 10 Favourite Things list. They would all make great Christmas gifts, particularly I’ll Do It Myself!

The printer First Choice Books called a bit ago; the books are being shipped today and they will be here tomorrow! I’m so excited that I can’t think! My “baby” is coming. Now I need to finish clearing space for seven boxes of books.

Visit Books by Glenda to order your copies!

After a few unexpected delays and some procrastination on my part, my autobiography I’ll Do It Myself is at the printer! It was surprisingly difficult to send the manuscript to the printer. Despite the intensive editing and proofreading, I feared errors would still be found. It is amazing how that fear of imperfection can paralyze someone. When I realized I had written this book for readers and not for critics, it was easier to take a leap of faith and to take the next step.

Hitting the send button also meant my dream was over. For thirty years, I’ve been dreaming about and preparing for writing and publishing this book one day. Now that the book exists, I am without my dream, without my security blanket, and that is also surprisingly scary. Now what will be my guiding star? I guess it is now time for a new dream, although I have no clue at this point what it will be. But I can imagine God thinking, “Would you please hurry up and get that book printed so that I can plant this dream seed. If you thought writing your autobiography was big, you ain’t seen anything yet, girl!”

As of Tuesday, the books were printed, the covers were laminated, and they were scheduled for binding today! I will have actual books in my hand early next week! I think it will be a “fall on my knees” when the boxes arrive.

The next step is to get them out to readers so that the book can begin fulfilling its purpose. Visit my site at www.BooksbyGlenda.com to pre-order your copies. I will pop in them in the mail as soon as I receive them – just in time for Christmas giving!

I have been reading about O.J. Simpson’s new book If I Did It and I am not sure what I find more disgusting: that he (or someone) actually wrote about “the events leading up to, including, and in the aftermath of the murders”; that Regan Books is actually publishing this work; that the book deal is an unconfirmed $3.5 million; or that people will buy this book and it will, no doubt, become a bestseller. Is this why our men and women have fought in war to defend our freedoms so that “authors” may claim the freedom of speech when writing such books?

Sorry, but this story really irks me. There are so many people with inspiring, motivating, uplifting stories that go untold because they can’t find a publisher. Yet, O.J. lands a publisher and all the media coverage he can handle because of who he is….and people will eat it up. Is something wrong with our society?

Now that I have that off my chest, I can go to bed and resume the shoestring-budget promotion of my self-published autobiography I’ll Do It Myself tomorrow.

Tags: O.J. Simpson, publishing, books