So the internets is going wild with rumors that Tim Tebow will star on the Bachelor — yeah, that show; the one where loser dudes who are tall, built, and successful go to find love since despite their qualities, they can’t find a soul mate. (Yo, losers? Here’s a clue: It’s called the internet. There are dozens of dating websites. Quit embarrassing yourselves.)
Anyway, if Tebow really does this, I’ll lose some serious respect for him. (And for those who don’t know… No, I’m not one of Tim Tebow’s religious fanatical fans.)
Sorry to disappoint all the weirdos who love the Bachelor and landed on my page from some terribly-gone-wrong Google search, but if you haven’t noticed, the page is loaded with grit and Marine Corps shit, so you should leave and return to your normal programming.
Moving on, we need to discuss some props for me.
First of all, I’ve always believed that the rapper Eminem had it right. Asked once in an interview after he made it big about how he dealt with his new friends in Hollywood and all the tumultuous relationships that occur there, he scoffed and said something like, “Friends? Friends?! I ain’t got no f–king friends here. None of these people gave a shit about me when I lived in a trailer park in Eight Mile (Detroit). Anyone who tries to be my friend now that I’m successful is suspect. They don’t care about me. They care about my money.”
I tried to find a link to this, but couldn’t, but he basically said it. I saw it, and have re-told it like fifty times. Maybe a hundred.
Why? Because that’s how I’m going to be. It’s a good mantra to live by.
And I say all this as background because I’ve had some great friends helping me as I pursue this dream of making it big in the fiction world.
Take this example. There’s an acquaintance of mine who I barely know. We once went to the same church, though I never talked with her there (yep, the church was that big), and she once heard me speak, and she sends in news announcements by e-mail on a monthly basis.
So… An acquaintance, right? That’s not what I’d exactly call a friend, right? Anyway, this lady e-mails me and asks if the book is in print many months ago. I tell it it’s not — it wasn’t then; stick with me on this shit and quit interrupting.
She sighs (it was by e-mail, but that was basically the gist of her reply) and tells me to let her know if it ever gets printed. I tell her it’ll never happen. Too much work and money and I have other novels to finish.
Months later, my book is selling like crazy and I take a detour to get it in print. Be stupid not to. So, I get all that formatting done and I remember her request and e-mail to tell her.
She thanks me for the alert, admits Westerns aren’t really her thing, but says she’ll try to buy it soon. I’m at first frustrated with her reply, and wondering why in the world I wasted the time to print it. (There were no sales the first few days.)
About a week later, she writes me excited and tells me she loved it. And asks if I’d be willing to sign a copy. I say sure, not thinking much of it.
Few days later she e-mails to make sure I’ll be in the office and then bam, holy shit, are-you-for-real, I can’t believe this, she shows up with three brand-new books she wants me to sign. Yes. THREE. (One for her husband, one for her brother-in-law, and I think one was for a friend in like Texas or something.)
Anyway, that was a big day when you’re still a nobody. An acquaintance buys a book, loves it, then buys three more.
That’s the kind of thing that keeps you pushing toward your dreams when you still harbor some doubts on those long, dark nights. And those are the kinds of things I hope I never forget when I do make it big. (Yep, I’m going to make it big or die trying. All you pessimists who just rolled your eyes need to get off my page, too. That kind of attitude will get you nowhere.)
Well, I need to run and get back to formatting my second novel that I just finished.
As a parting note, here’s some more props for the book from literally today:
“It was amazing. I cannot believe how much action there was. It takes a lot to keep my attention and Stan pulled it off. You need to buy this book.” (Link.)
Stan R. Mitchell
Oak Ridge, Tenn.
P.S. Please accept the greatest gift I can give.
P.P.S. Thanks to all who continue to make my novel Little Man, and the Dixon County War a huge success! It’s gone as high as No. 16 on the Amazon UK Paid List (see here and here), landing smack dab between a Louis L’Amour and Zane Grey book. Learn more about it here.
