For You
My book is for you. It doesn’t matter whether you read it or not, it’s still for you. Don’t look over your shoulder to see who I’m talking to. It’s you. Especially you. Only you. My book is for the part of you that you hide from most of the world. Like Beth, and like me, there is so much inside you that you work hard to contain. Deep in your soul there is fear and longing, compassion and brilliance. In your battered psyche there are painful open wounds and also miraculously healed spaces of lightness and joy.
My book is for you because of all the times you wished you could hear the thoughts in someone else’s head. Because you know there is always way more than meets the eye. And because you also know that as experienced and jaded as you may be, you would be stunned if you could hear people’s thoughts. That’s why my book is for you, because Beth compelled me to invite you inside her/my/your/our world, with no holds barred.
Each character in my book is you and is also me, though none is any of us. You are not in the book. If you ever wonder, the answer is no. She/he is not you. There is so much more to you. But then again, he/she is you, of course, because the separateness of humanity is an illusion.
I am not my protagonist Beth. And I am. Every day I am braver than Beth and every day I wish I had her courage. We become different people in different moments. Time is not linear, yet we cannot go back and change the things we wish we could. I don’t know if Beth would undo what she did. I would ask her if I could. The book is a three-month snapshot of her life and her choices: a game-changing, identity-shifting, twisted, tormented, and glorious three months.
My book is for every woman or man who has craved passion and connection. It’s for you because I know that you have weighed the risks of reaching for more versus the comfort of playing it safe. My book is for the seeker in you, the lover of love in all its forms, sanctioned and forbidden.
My book is to help you see that you can forgive, whoever it is, whatever they did. No matter the crime, when you open your heart to follow the journey of the perpetrator, you will understand how they arrived at their destination. Everyone strays, in one way or another. None of us can throw the first stone.
Finally, my book is for you because I have known that I wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember. But I didn’t answer the calling until I was forty-four years old. You know something like that about yourself too and I urge you not to wait another minute.
These are all the reasons why my book is for you, just you. It is a deeply intimate exchange between you and me, so please be aware of my fragility in releasing it. Despite my fears, I give it to you with great love and gratitude. If it weren’t for you, I could never have written it with such honesty. Thank you.
Is This All There Is? is available today in paperback and eBook formats through Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Follow me on Facebook and Twitter:
http://www.facebook.com/patricia.mann.969
https://twitter.com/PatriciaMann11
Check out My Book Boyfriend Blogger’s post about my book!
http://mybookboyfriend.blogspot.com/2013/01/is-this-all-there-is-by-patricia-mann.html
10 Comments
Thank you so much for heeding the call, stepping into the great unknown and putting your heart on the page. I ordered my copy of Is This All There Is last night (no Kindle/Nook for me, I want to hold the actual book in my hands!). I ALREADY looked forward to reading it, but after reading your recent blog post, I am ALL THE MORE excited. I am inspired by your candor and can already tell there will be many pages and passages that are highlighted, dog-eared and otherwise resonated with deeply! Heartfelt congratulations on the Amazon release and your book being in print 🙂
Congratulations to you, Patricia!
I offer my support, while I try to tamp down my envy.
I, too, have always wanted to be a writer. It looks as though one needs to FINISH telling one’s story in order to write a book. I can start a story. I can work on stories. I have yet to finish one.
I am inspired by your effort, your bravery, your candor and your encouragement.
Thank you and congrats!
Thank you, Wendy! Yes, candor is the key in this book – all feelings are out in the open, for better or worse. I don’t know that Beth is a hero or role model, but she did show us what goes on in the mind of a woman who is struggling, which could be helpful to some. She also shows us that we often don’t realize the dire consequences of our actions – at least not in the moment. I hope that Beth can teach us all to think and act with care and caution and to consider the devastating impact of a poor choice that only led to a few moments of fleeting pleasure.
Allison – envy? envy?! Hahahhaha! Today was absolute torture…. spent reading reviews and obsessively checking Amazon sales which appear to total only 5… though I think technology may be pulling a trick on me to make me pay for my hopes and dreams. I also got a review on Goodreads that was pretty powerful and evoked all the pain and emotion I hoped the book would evoke, and seemed so positive, but somehow also included the line, “I honestly can’t say I liked the book.” The teacher in me says well she gave me 4/5, at least 80%, not failing, but still… I made my poor husband read and analyze the review for me and he seems to think it shows how much the book gets under people’s skin and will make people want to read it… I just don’t know and I think I have too much of an obsessive personality for this type of pursuit. You can all read it and see what you think… If you read this comment, Juls, please don’t think I am in any way unappreciative of your review. I thank you for dedicating the time to read my book and for your honesty, genuinely! It’s just I’m realizing maybe my skin is just not thick enough for all this… this may only be the beginning. There will be terrible reviews, I’m sure, and I’ll have to survive it all…
Here’s the review:
First thing I did after reading this book, I went and kissed my husband. Not just a peck but a full on tongue twirling make love to his mouth kinda kiss. I wanted him to know that I desired him above all else.
I honestly can’t say I liked this book. My heart still hurts from it. There were so many real emotions that I went through and the process of what happened breaks me up inside. I silently begged Beth not to do the things she was doing and when she didnt listen to me, I was really upset with her. Not like me being upset with a character in a book like she is but like she was a friend of mine and I just couldnt believe she would do this to herself.
I totally get where she’s coming from. Especially as a woman, a wife, a mother. We take everything upon ourselves to get it done and done right. She felt like her world was coming apart and a small glimmer of hope comes in the form of a young college kid. He says the right thing and with just a simple word everything is thrown out the window.
It was never about someone new. To be loved, lusted, appreciated, and cherished, it didnt have to come from her husband.
Beth never anticipated her life to spiral out of control but what she thought was innocent flirting turned into gut wrenching torture of the cruelest kind. She couldnt get enough of him and the more she got a taste the more she couldnt wait for the next moment with him. But that high didnt stick around for long and right when she thought she was on cloud nine her world comes shattering back to reality and none of the pieces fit back together like they used to.
Personally the ending would have been different had this happened to me but the way things wrapped up in the story felt more like reality.
Thank you Ms. Mann for allowing me to review this book.
PS: Allison, I hope you know I love you to pieces and I’m sure you are a far better writer than me. How about showing me what you’ve got and maybe I can help nudge you forward? Would be honored to do so! 🙂
What a wonderful post! I got goosebumps reading.
Thank you so much, Meredith! Very kind of you to say! Can’t wait to read your work as well! 🙂
[…] Find out the story behind the story here and the reasons why author Patricia Mann decided to publish this bestseller here. […]
[…] Sick Blog – 12/13/12 Cheating – 12/20/12 Guest Blogger – My 15 and 1/2 year old son – 12/27/12 For You – 01/03/13 Thank You – 01/10/13 To Be Or Not To Be… A Parent – 01/17/13 Showing Your Privates – […]
[…] Sick Blog – 12/13/12 Cheating – 12/20/12 Guest Blogger – My 15 and 1/2 year old son – 12/27/12 For You – 01/03/13 Thank You – 01/10/13 To Be Or Not To Be… A Parent – 01/17/13 Showing Your Privates – […]