Well, I hope everyone is doing well. We haven’t swapped any nukes with Russia yet. I did clear out all the stuff under my desk so that if Russia does launch on us, I can duck under my desk like they had us do when we were kids in grade school (‘we’ = baby boomers). I still remember that. It was great... especially if the drill happened during math class.
If you don’t have a desk to protect you from a nuclear attack, I recommend you get one. I understand they are reasonably priced on Amazon and Wallmart web sites. Here’s a picture of President Kennedy famously teaching his son, John John, how to survive a nuclear attack.
Cute little guy. We all loved him, and Caroline. Years later, while planning a run against Hillary Clinton for retiring New York Senator Patrick Moynihan’s seat, John, his wife, Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, his sister-in-law, Lauren Bessette, 34, all died when John Jr.’s plane nose-dived into the sea off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.
Well, I’m trying to do my taxes now. I know... I always wait till the last minute. I guess I just hate giving my money to the government. It’s like giving money to a ‘homeless’ person. You know they’re going to buy cheap liquor with it. The government doesn’t do that, just spends it on funding Bio-research facilities in the Ukraine and other parts of the world, providing free needles and crack pipes to junkies, and teaching ‘queer theory’ in kindergarten on up. Yeah, sad but true... Google it.
So, I finally got my book published but I notice none of you have bought a copy. Actually, no one has. Amazon tells me how many people buy my books. Fact! They even tell me how many pages they’ve read. So, I thought I’d nag you again. I’ve gotten two nice reviews (for proof copies submitted) and a book review site has scheduled to publish another review on April 18.
Sometimes writing is frustrating. Just thought of something... It’s kind of like at an open mic in a music venue, a bar or something. And someone gets up on stage and strums, pouring their heart out in a song... and nobody’s listening. They’re all talking and laughing.
Actually, that very thing happened to me... open mic. Well, I did have two shots before I got up there and my ears went out and I couldn’t tune the thing... Wait a minute. I got an idea. I’ll go to a comedy show and when a comedian says something that I find offensive, I’ll go up and slap him, if he’s not too big, and then everybody in the country will know me and pay for my art. Whatdya think?
Yeah. You’re right...
I guess all artists have to suffer a little for their art. It’s a truism. I wrote a poem about it once.
The Writer
by Paul Clayton
A co-worker approached me
the other day.
“How’s the book doing?” she asked.
“Not too good,” I said.
“It’s out of print.”
She looked shocked.
I was tempted to ask,
“Did you buy a copy?”
But I didn’t.
I had failed.
I could see it in her eyes.
I felt like saying,
“I’m sorry I’ve let you down.”
Instead, I said, “Come with me.”
I led her into the copy room.
I would commit seppuku
with a no. 2 pencil.
Hey, it was nice spending a few moments with you. Here’s a link to my book if you want to read the reviews and the intro. Amazon will let you read the first couple of pages if you click. Escape From the Future and Other Stories by Paul Clayton.
Well, it *is* national poetry month, so have at it!
I certainly recognize your frustration. Years ago (when I used FB), I asked my friends there (many of whom had read and said nice things to me about my book) to post reviews. Nobody did--except you, Paul, and I still appreciate that.
I have plugged your latest work two or three times in the discussion boards at Instapundit, and will do so again. You might want to contact the owner of that blog to see if he'd like a copy, because he does promote books occasionally. When he mentioned mine, there was a phenomenal, if brief, improvement in its AMZ ranking... Promotion is always hard. But you did a good job on this, and that knowledge is worth something.