mushroom head (early reviews)

Friends, countrypersons, mom,

The book launches in two weeks. I've been asked by friends how I'm feeling (where on the continuum between peaceful and Sybil) - and to share a few thoughts on the blog.

My head is swelling. Literally. I have been many weeks without a haircut. The sides are puffing out like someone took an air pump to my skull. My wife is calling me 'mushroom head.'

I'm getting it shorn tonight. A somewhat symbolic slicing. It means I'm readying myself for public showings -- the upcoming readings, a few media events, a presentation here and there. I'm getting my game hair on. Next, my wife will want to have me properly bathed and clothed, but we're not rushing into anything.

Book reviews are trickling in. Booklist called it a shrewd cinematic thriller; A reviewer for Enfuse, a culture magazine in Colorado (where I grew up) said it caused her to question the nature of love. Review at: http://www.enfusemagazine.com/culture/content.cfm?Article_id=576 ; Parade Magazine is making it a "parade pick" in an upcoming issue; New York's Newsday has put it on its summer reading list.

Publisher's Weekly gave Hooked a tepid review. Before we asked for a correction, the review incorrectly spelled my name, that of the protagonist and the protagonist's love interest, and it got basic facts wrong about the plot. (Maybe if it went semi-weekly the organization would have time to actually read the books before reviewing).

The bulk of the reviews and other media should come in the next month.

So with the launch imminent, what is the mood of a first-time author, soon to be shorn?

Eighty percent of me feels balanced, not obsessive, excited for a new experience -- like I've got a nice coffee buzz but could still manage a nap. The great joy was in writing the book; now, should people choose to read it, it's their experience. Much as I'd like to have my ideas out there, I can't control if people buy it, or read or like it, or, having done so, want to burn it...and me.

Which brings me to the periodic madness. There are moments when I get a little dramatic, weird and lose perspective. Like I'm ready to be fitted for a white, ventilated full body suit. I guess can't spend three years creating something, unveil it to the world and not periodically feel vulnerable, and like maybe it would have been better off going into a quiet career in tax law.

I'm ready. I'm in the right frame of mind. Come what may. I refer, of course, to the imminent hair cut. May it be everything I hope for, and less.