Wildcranberries

Inspired by Ruth, Asterisk and Dom7, I have decided to look at the process of getting published from a perspective that doesn’t freeze me with inability to act. The goal will be about both conference papers and, more crucially, scholarly articles in journals.

Yesterday, submission 1 for this goal got sent – a proposed paper for a conference in Florida next autumn. In that process, I noticed I have an article-length, pretty interesting paper manuscript that has been waiting for 11 months without me doing anything to it despite encouragement to publish. There really has been something wrong with me re: publishing that needs to be rethought. I can’t expect all my life to write and give only invited papers where the fear of rejection is taken away. So, starting now, I will focus zealously and work really hard on getting 43 paper rejections.

and more hopeful every day. Today, it smelled like the first day of spring here. I made a new friend, a smart interesting Swiss art historian, and also new daily life-organizing plan that should help me work better. An anonymous referee for a book manuscript called my article in it “original” and “of exceptional quality.” And, some other stuff that’s the most hope-inspiring of all.

Maybe it was also being ickily ill last weekend, and having to cancel all the fun stuff that was planned. There’s nothing like a forced sofa-rest for making one appreciate life. I’m almost afraid to say it… but, I’m happy.

Five moths after the application, I got my card in the mail! And it says fun things like “legal alien” on the backside of it. Hee.

Now I’ll have to see if I can still get the honorarium for the talk I gave last autumn they couldn’t pay me because I had no SSN. I so know what I’d do with 200 dollars. As for applying for an U.S. credit card or getting a new phone, I don’t need either.