G’day :)
Spring has sprung and the weather up here in North Queensland is glorious. I hope you are all enjoying the weather as it warms up. Time to start pulling out the togs and thongs and dusting off the barbeques, summer is only around the corner and will be here before we know it.
Since the release of Rosalee Station I have been inundated with beautiful emails and letters from people who have thoroughly enjoyed the story, their passion for the Aussie characters and the outback setting shining through. It has been wonderful! I also knew that there would be reviews that were, let’s say, not what I wanted to hear. Or so I thought!
As with the ebb and flow of life there is always two sides to a coin and I was terrified of how I would feel when I read my very first “bad” review. Would I give up my obsession with writing, would I cry for days or weeks, would I crawl under a rock and feel like a complete failure? I didn’t know what to expect until a few weeks ago when I opened my email and there it was, the dreaded review, the one that made me cringe with every word.
But, I got to the end without crumbling to pieces, and then I read it again, wondering what was wrong with me. Where were the tears? Why wasn’t I crawling underneath the largest rock I could find? Then it dawned on me, that common saying, “you cannot please everyone all the time.” Then I shrugged it off and got on with my day, my thoughts returning to all the wonderful reviews I had received from readers, radio stations and newspapers. For they, by far, outweighed this one review.
Like anything in life, you can choose how you are going to react to something, and I chose to instead focus on the positive reviews. So a big thanks to all of you out there who have sent them to me! They inspire me and keep me confident in my writing. I would like to share the most recent one I have got with you, all the way from France............
Hi there Mandy, Oh dear oh dear, just turned the last page yesterday night, and..... Sob.... can't let go of the story.... Sob... Where is the follow up to Rosalee Station?? You can't just leave us there, out in limbo, and NOT tell us what is happening to that gorgeous couple!!!! Where’s the sequel, Mandy?? I won't allow it!! :) I loved your descriptions of the Outback. I have lots of images in my head now, especially as I have seen some with my own eyes, when we visited Australia some years back. While describing Sarah's journey down to Mt Isa, I followed on the map to see which places she drove through.
I found your book to be filled with little life's lessons, some of them too easily forgotten in our hectic lives, especially when you live in/close to big cities. One of them comes immediately to mind which is "Life isn't always fair, but it's at these moments that you have to decide if you are going to be a victim or a survivor". I think I'll take that with me; or "dew are angels dancing in the sunlight"....so cute. Where did you get that one from? There were others, but I'd need to re-read the book. Thanks again for a lovely read. Hugs Brigitte xx
Thought for this week
“Man can never discover new oceans until he has the courage to lose sight of the shore”
Don't you just love the photo of my Dad's boots on my wedding day!
I will be over at the Yungaburra Book Fair this weekend so if you are over that way, please pop in and say hi. It is on all day Saturday from 10am until 4pm. I am really looking forward to meeting all the other talented authors who will also be there, especially Helene Young, whom I have made great friends with over the net but it will be lovely to meet her in person.
Until next time, keeping smiling and dreaming
Mandy :)
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