Manuscript with a Beard
Bruce Cook
Publisher - Reservebooks.com, VP/Founder Worldwide Peace Organization (WWPO. org)
42 years! That’s how long I spent writing my novel “Harmony of Nations.” My second novel has been in the works since 2012 – that’s 21 years!
I started two novels while stationed on the coast in Italy in 1970. On return to the US, I completed one and managed to convince a literary agent to review it. Like most writers, I was fully prepared for instant success.
His response – no novel could be that short.
This felt like a blow to the chest. It was 1974 and I was mired in doctoral studies. Upset, I set the project aside, desperate but planning to merge the two novels together to make one with the required length.
I carefully placed the novels in a half-inch thick box that originally held Eaton's Corrasable Bond erasable typing paper. (In those days a manuscript was typed, retyped, and retyped repeatedly.)
My project was set aside until, in several years, I made it a point to store my manuscripts in one area. Sadly, I could not find those two novels. They were the only manuscripts I couldn’t find.
Later (1999), when moving to North Carolina. I sorted through my collection of special copy printing papers, throwing some away and placing others into a box for the move I came across that old Easton Corrasable Bond box. I balanced it, wondering why in the world I would ever need a box of erasable typing paper. Technology had moved ahead and, by then, all you needed was a ream of printer paper. I almost threw the Eaton box away.
Thankfully, my curiosity got the best of me, It occurred to me – why not take a look to find out whether this expensive paper had turned yellow over the years. With that in mind, I cracked the half-inch box open and pulled out one of the sheets. Voila! It was a title page of my novel from Italy!
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Thrilled and challenged, I plunged back into those novels. I was fortunate to contact an acquisitions editor in Germany and persuaded her to wait for my Italian gem.
Finally, in 2010, I reached my final chapters. Amazed, I found myself intimidated by the thought of completion. It seemed impossible to tie all the story threads together, for the novel itself covered a 78-year time span!
It was a classic writing block. Alas, I would never finish!
Then came two nights with vivid dreams. In those dreams I saw the final sequences playing out. Overwhelmed and full of elation, I wrote the last chapters. It just flowed from the memory of those dreams. Naturally, I still think the conclusion was brilliant!
After a period of tough editing and criticism by my friend Kenneth Mulholland, I revised the work and sent it off. In 2012 my novel,?Harmony of Nations: 1943 – 2020, was published in Germany.
You can see the finished work (republished with no beard) at?https://www.amazon.com/Harmony-Nations-Bruce-L-Cook/dp/1387013114
So, fellow writers, take heart. You have a lifetime to complete your story. Please get started (again) today!
Pianist
2 年Your article gave me both inspiration and perspective. Thanks so much for sharing it. I am 75 and I am hoping to finish my first novel this year. I have been working on it for forty years., but I am very excited about the prospect of finishing it. Thanks again.
English Teacher at Calthorpe Park School
2 年It's so interesting, isn't it? The pressure we put on ourselves to achieve or succeed as fast as we can. Often or not we forget it is the journey to get there that counts as much as the dream itself! Great read, thank you for sharing your thoughts.
Publisher - Reservebooks.com, VP/Founder Worldwide Peace Organization (WWPO. org)
2 年Please contact me at [email protected] My late wife died of brain cancer and I feel strongly that your story could help many people. That disease is merciless!
Creative Artist at OutsideIn specializing in Hand-drawn Pet Portraits
2 年Hello Bruce, your story resonated with me! Although I didn't lose my book journal for Fourty-Five years, it was a journal following my diagnosis of Breast Cancer as a Single mum aged Thirty-Four with two young children to support. The Journal was a log of the rollercoaster ride a Breast Cancer diagnosis takes you and your family on. After treatment-A lumpectomy/Mastectomy-6 months of gruelling Chemotherapy -I closed my Journal in a drawer for nearly ten years- I could only find one book on breast cancer for younger women through treatment (remember this was 1999). "Before I say Goodbye."Ruth Picardie sadly didn't survive this crappy disease. My journey is unique, and I survived my journey. Sadly, so many aren't as lucky as I-Men and women. My book is free for those on Kindle Unlimited-so, not quite the local library-Im still working on that one! Would you happen to have any suggestions or tips? I'd appreciate it if you could help me make this happen. Diagnosed 1999-Still here 2023 -Still all clear. Luv Kay Baldbird my story of Surviving Breast Cancer-Kaye Howarth Amazonkdp https://www.kaeharveyauthor.com #indiewriter #publishercontractwelcome #foreverhopeful #liveyourdreams
Your Trusted Copy Editor Gets You … and gets you published.
2 年Usually I just glance through the notifications but as I started reading yours, I was mesmerised. What a trail you trod to finish your book! I can relate to your on-again, off-again desire to write. I look forward to reading more from you! Thank you for the post.