I wasn’t thinking, that’s what. Uh…the kids were distracting me…yeah, that’s it. It’s all their fault.
I was reading Jodi Picoult while I was nursing Nicholas, and as I flipped the book closed, I caught sight of a priest saying that divorce is a mortal sin. RRRGH. You know how I am about the way the Catholic Church is portrayed in the culture. So I went to the computer…and I emailed Jodi Picoult, saying that this it’s not divorce, but remarriage after divorce, that gets that moniker.
And she emailed me back.
In two minutes.
Saying she’d had three priests read it.
Okay, let’s be honest.
- If I’d really thought this through, I would not have contacted a NY Times bestselling author to tell her what’s wrong with her book. (What was I THINKING?)
- If I’d really thought I had to email a NY Times bestselling author, telling her what’s wrong with her book, and if it had occurred to me that said bestselling author would answer her own email, I’d have spent two hours on those two paragraphs, instead of twenty minutes. Making sure I didn’t sound a) snarky, b) like a religious freak, c) like lowly little wannabe writer presuming to critique said Successsful Writer.
Yes, I am fully aware that I’m making far too big a deal of this. It must be the middle child in me; I never want anyone to think badly of me, and the more I think about the email I sent, the more I think it *was* snarky, presumptuous, and written like I was a religious freak.
It used to happen with liturgical composers. I would go up to them, try to “network” as a person who wanted to be a successful church composer. Inevitably I spent the next three nights lying awake writhing in embarrassment for how stupid I sounded in those encounters. (Who am I kidding? I *still* writhe in shame when I think of them!) I’ve finally (mostly) cleared that hurdle now…only to plunge back into deeper waters in the secular, written world.
So do I reply back, and apologize/explain/dig my hole even deeper? Or do I slink off into e-oblivion and hope that if I ever do make it in the writing world, that she doesn’t remember the presumptuous little yahoo who emailed her on a Friday morning in August of 2009?
Kathleen M. Basi 
Why are you worried? What you said in your email is correct. So she had 3 priests look at it – it’s still not accurate.
BTW I can no longer read Jodi Picault books, as I have a hard time finding redeeming factors in the adults in the book. Now perhaps that’s the point, but I’m done.
You are right–I was right, and I don’t understand how three priests could get it wrong. The only things I can think are: 1) maybe the priests have the same hesitation to critique a major author (though you would certainly HOPE that’s not the case) or 2)–more likely–they really didn’t have time to give it a thorough reading.
I know I’m right, it just makes me cringe to try to “correct” perceived authority.
I have trouble with the adults, as well. JP is great at plotting, I just wish that there would be some praiseworthy adults in her books. But then, she writes about dysfunction. That’s what she does.
You were right Kate. Don’t be afraid to speak the truth. I think it’s the “little girl” in you trying to take over. Somethimes we “older adults” still make mistakes :). We’re just so used to being the boss that we find it hard to accept when someone points out that we made a mistake.