I remember, not that long ago, perhaps as little as two weeks ago, turning to my girlfriend and saying something along the lines of, "If there's one thing I hate is people that succeed in their endeavours and forget about the people that helped get them there." I mean stuff happens but you should always take the time to acknowledge and throw support back, or at the VERY least, thanks, to the wonderful folks who gave you that little push when you needed it.
Never, ever, forget or overlook what they've done for you.
Well... I did.
I'd like to add some sort of qualifier there, such as "sort of" or "a little bit", but to me that's just making excuses. Something I try not to do. Explanations are ok, but if you can come up with an excuse, then you should have come up with results.
So, I guess I should explain exactly what I'm talking about.
One of the earliest people to throw a kind word of support my way (and by this I mean someone I'd never even met before) was Jean-Francois Fournier of the blog They Stand on Guard! (http://theystandonguard.blogspot.ca/). He, I assume, as I've never actually ASKED (another slip), came across LEGACY through the artist I worked with, Mike Campeau, and was quick to give it shout-outs despite still being in-production and with very little in terms of released art or any other type of preview. Just a good guy doing a good deed for a fellow comic book enthusiast and countryman. It was very much appreciated.
When LEGACY #1 did come out, July 3 of this year, Mr. Fournier was one of the very first people to throw down some hard-earned cash to get a copy. Much appreciated. Words are always wonderful but when someone backs that up with, these days, a dwindling entertainment budget (in light of cost increases in essentials), that to me speaks volumes. Not that I don't love kind words of support- believe me those have a HUGE value, but making this books do cost cash and every penny that comes back means another penny towards doing more books.
But I digress.
Sort of.
Because, you see, Jean-Francois did not STOP at putting his money where his mouth was, to use that phrase, he also put his mouth where his money was.
http://theystandonguard.blogspot.ca/2013/07/the-story-of-city-called-legacy.html
If you click on that link, you'll be redirected to his blog. Specifically an entry that reviews... You guessed it, LEGACY #1. As in MY book. The one that he was always happy to say nice things about and follow on the Facebook page and on my Twitter account, and now, most likely the website as well. (here's a link to the website, in case you, my wonderful reader, have yet to check it out http://andrewlorenz753.wix.com/september17)
And I didn't read it until today.
Don't get me wrong, I've read a bunch of his entries, not only because he's a swell guy, but because I love learning more about the much under-rated and acknowledged Canadian comic book community. More and more I discover things of the past and learn about the current, thriving, state of Canadian comic books. In large part due to his blog.
So why didn't I read it sooner? As you can see it's dated in July- as anyone with a basic understanding of a calendar can plainly see it is now October. For anyone as math-challenged as I am, that's just over THREE MONTHS AGO.
Again, why hadn't I ran across it sooner? True, Mr. Fournier, to me a much under-recognized champion of many things Canadian, toils away in relative silence- you can feel the passion in which he writes about things he loves, but grandstanding or tooting his own horn is not his style. So it's no surprise that he didn't go, "Hey! Andrew! Look at this thing I wrote about your book! Thank me for it now!" or "Give me free books to sing your praises!"
No, what he did was write an extremely nice review of the book, without me asking, or even thinking to ask (bad business move on my part- reviews help to sell books), he, in true Canadian fashion, just went ahead and did the job; without expecting anything in return.
I'd like to say a quick piece on the review- he nailed exactly the tone of the book that I was going for. So either he's brilliant (very possible) or Mike and I did a really good job of getting our story across in the way we wanted to do it. I'll give Mike a big part of that credit.
Either way I greatly appreciate the kind words.
And that's why I wrote this entry today. Not only to apologize for not seeing it sooner, or to thank him for taking the time to purchase, read and review the book (for all of which, I'd like to say THANK YOU) but also to let it be known, not just to Mr. Fournier, but everyone who's been a part of all of this, that everything you have done and continue to do is appreciated and that I will make greater efforts to acknowledge the support you have shown me. Thank you.
I'm sorry it took so long for me to come across the review Jean-Francois, but thank you for it, and much like Paragon protecting Legacy, I'll do my best not to let you down.
It's all good, man. :-)
ReplyDeleteYou can't be blamed for not coming across something I didn't tell you about. I have no expectation on the number of visits. Really, I should have to draw you in like you do me as a consumer of your books.
Besides, I prefer for people to be surprised by a mention of whatever product they're creating. I think that must be a cool feeling. Sooner or later, most seem to come across it.
Now I do have to change my mindset a fair amount. You're right, self-promotion is not my thing. I do have concerns about it. That people will think I'm whoring a product for my own gain is among them.
However, I need to wrap my head around the fact that I'm not SELF promoting at all, even if it's through my own blog. I'm trying to draw attention to other people's work. That's the goal. I can't help how it is perceived.
In any event, no apologies required, and you've expressed your gratitude a number of times. One of those times was quite spectacular, I might add. :-)