It's no secret — I love getting mail. I love opening a package and not knowing what to expect. Or knowing EXACTLY what to expect. And this time of year is great for mail, as I'm sure most of you can appreciate.
Today, though…
Well, I knew it was coming, but even forewarned, there's still something of a heady thrill receiving an edited manuscript back from ones publisher. Well, a heady thrill, with a healthy dose of anticipatory nausea.
I have a ritual, for times like these. I open the package, I take a quick look at the notes, I glance through some pages, looking to see how many markings there are on the page, and then — this is the crucial step — I close the box and ignore it, for at least 12 hours. Let my initial feelings of shock and dismay fade…
This time, though, I added a step. I took a photo:
Sorry for the grainy cellphone-ness of it, but I wanted to capture the moment.
I've included a copy of Before I Wake for scale.
I heard that! That *gasp*.
Would it comfort you to learn that on the FedEx waybill, the package was listed as weighing 12 pounds? No?
Me neither.
I guess I know what I'm doing after Christmas…
An impressive pile, Mr Wiersema. it appears to be about the same height as your opened notebook.