I know I can safely confess this here-- as a child, Santa Claus scared the bejeezus out of me. I wished to God I was Jewish. Or that my parents belonged to any other religious persuasion that didn't involve this annual torture. I dreaded going into Sears anytime in December because HE might be there. I hid in the bathroom as long as I politely could while my extraverted sibs lined right up salivating. ( I know you'll all so get this.)WHY I HATED TRIPS TO SEE SANTA
1). He was extremely loud2). His clothes were too red
3). I was supposed to sit on a stranger's lap???
4). I was always worried that the elf might try to kiss me when I wasn't looking
5). When it was my turn, all the other kids and their parents stood in line watching
6). Stood waiting.
7). Stood listening.
8). Santa wanted to know what I wanted, and there was no confidentiality like at Confession.
9). And he almost always wanted me to "SPEAK UP, Honey!"
10).Being an INFJ, albeit a young one, I had a sneaky feeling he wasn't all he was dressed up to be.
So, in case any of you have a similar dread about your wish list, Robin and I are going to make it easy for you! Starting today, we will be accepting your Holiday Wish List for Marketing & Promotion in 2009. Wow. I know!
Whatever your socio-politico-economo-spirito views about December are . . . you must agree that it is a very potent and magical time of year. The quality of quiet, light and stillness never fails to stir me. I'm in Texas for this entire month, and I'm looking forward to falling asleep tonight to a symphony of rain and thunder, with a cowdog Hank snoring next to me.
What magic are you ready to have in your life? If you weren't feeling a little shy about asking, what would you ask for?
I'll start, and let's see if we can get Robin to come on line and post hers. :-] And, we'd love to hear from you! I happen to know for a fact that at least one New York editor, publicist, and agent read our blog, and an awful lot of people in all sorts of roles in the biz, so here's your chance to put your wish out there. You just never know. . .
Mary Hershey's Marketing & Promotion Wish List for 2009
* I want Michelle Obama to start a monthly Kid's Book Pick and interview the author at the White House, which would then be aired on national television. This will translate into ginormous $ale$ and well-paid school visits. I get to go first, but then I want every single one of you featured you in the ensuing months. (If Michelle is too busy, Ellen DeGeneres could do this, too.)* I want to interview all these people for SVP: Anne Lamott, Ann Patchett, Henry Winkler, Marion Dane Bauer, and Cynthia Rylant.
* I want the-secret-thing-that-I-just-applied-for to come through.
* I would like Random House to hire a nice eco-friendly blimp to make the rounds of major cities for a few days each month advertising my books. And if they could shower school grounds with Whopper's during recess without head or eye injury to anyone, that would be swell.
Robin LaFever's Marketing & Promotion Wish List for 2009
(a-hem. . .)
Can't wait to hear from all of you! And as always, if you want to put your wishes out there in Universe, but want some privacy, you can email me at Here's my 2009 Wish List!
Grace and peace,
Mary Hershey
