May 2, 2011

Made It Moment: Joanna Campbell Slan

Filed under: Made It Moments — jenny @ 8:47 am

Photo, Snap, Shot

Oh boy, could I relate to Joanna Campbell Slan’s comment about the bar getting moved. This is a key obstacle in the concept of making it, and well worth a Moment on its own. But if you read on, you’ll see that even a book tour, a parade, and OPRAH may not convince an author that she’s made it…

Joanna Campbell Slan

Have I made it?
That’s a question I often ask myself. The truth is I keep moving the bar. My husband reminds me that when we met I told him that I would be a success if I managed to EVER get a book published. That was fourteen years and fifteen books ago, and I still wonder: What does it take to be a success in this business? Will I know it when I am?

This summer I launched the “Kiki Lowenstein World Tour,” a book tour that took me from my home in Washington, D.C., to stops in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri. My Aunt Shirley came along as my traveling companion and navigator. We did pretty well until a detour outside of Indianapolis confused us.

So we were running late to the Oprah Book Club in Monroe City, Indiana, just down the road from my old hometown Vincennes. As we pulled into the community center, Aunt Shirley said, “Look at all those cars!”

“They must be having another event here tonight,” I said.

They weren’t.

Everyone was there to see me.

Most of the audience had read Paper, Scissors, Death, the first book in my series-and they were eager to read my newest one, Photo, Snap, Shot. I spent hours signing books and chatting with the crowd. Then a member of the Vincennes City Council and asked if I’d consider being the Grand Marshal at the Vincennes Christmas Parade this year.

Gosh.

Imagine! Being part of a parade! In my own hometown! On the very sidewalks where I once stood as a kid!

Have I made it?

Oh, I still have career aspirations and goals that I have not achieved. I am a very ambitious person. I love writing. I love every aspect
of creating a book, from conception to editing and right through promotion.

But have I made it?

Maybe. Maybe not. I prefer to believe that the best is yet to come.
Meanwhile, I’m practicing my wave so that when I sit on top of that holiday
float, I’ll look like I belong there.

Joanna Campbell Slan is the author of the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series. The first book in the series–Paper, Scissors, Death–was nominated for an Agatha Award. The third book in the series, Photo, Snap, Shot, has just been released. Visit her at http://www.JoannaSlan.com or read her posts every Monday at http://KillerHobbies.blogspot.com.






7 Comments »

  1. Sounds to me like you’ve made it!! :) Congrats on the success. Seeing all those cars rowed up to see you must’ve felt great.

    Comment by Savvy — May 2, 2011 @ 10:04 am

  2. I think we all raise the bar (who wants to be a has-been, after all?) but causing a traffic jam is pretty definitive proof that you have made it. Have fun at the parade!

    Comment by Sara — May 2, 2011 @ 10:37 am

  3. I would say you’ve definitely made it! But then I also used to say I would be perfectly happy if I could get a book published–just one! My book is set to release soon and it only seems to be opening up a new can of worries, concerns and reasons for my face to get prematurely wrinkled.

    Maybe I should revise my statement to say if I went to my hometown and they had a parade and I was part of their Oprah bookclub….then I’d KNOW I had made it.

    Comment by Johanna — May 2, 2011 @ 11:19 am

  4. I would definitely say you have made it! But I know the feeling of moving that bar.

    Comment by Kristie Leigh Maguire — May 2, 2011 @ 11:30 am

  5. Thanks so much–I am here at Festival of Mystery–and wish I could see you all here!

    Comment by Joanna Slan — May 2, 2011 @ 3:59 pm

  6. We all think you’ve made it, Joanna!
    Maybe the author herself is the last to know, but that’s what keeps us always trying to do better.

    Congratulations are due at every step, and a parade? Well, double that round of cheers!

    Comment by Camille Minichino — May 2, 2011 @ 6:12 pm

  7. I guess it’s like bragging on yourself. You’re worried that the minute you do, things will go wrong. But I have to say that I wake up every day thrilled to be doing what I love–and feeling so blessed that I can point to a row of books on my bookshelves with my name on them.

    Comment by Joanna Campbell Slan — May 3, 2011 @ 10:50 pm

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