Monday, July 10, 2023

I was thrilled... and intimidated. Back in January, I received an email from Bob Metz, the host of the long-running radio show and podcast Just Right, inviting me to make an in-studio appearance. I was thrilled for the publicity the show would bring to Much Ado About Corona, but intimidated by my first in-person interview (so far they've all been online).

I had spent two years writing the novel in relative isolation. Part of me wishes it would just sell itself, without requiring me to do interviews and other public appearances. Public speaking seems the exact opposite of the writer's life.

By coincidence, that night, after receiving Bob Metz's invitation, I was reading a book a friend lent me, Mary Magdalene Revealed by Meggan Watterson. The author tells how she was invited to France to give a series of talks:

"So even though, as always, I just wanted to remain in my cozy apartment, take care of my sweet little man, and stay the hell still, I said yes. I said yes because I heard a yes, if you know what I mean. I didn't think about it, or listen to the way my ego took off and started panicking. I felt the yes. It was sitting there inside me like the only grown-up in a room filled with toddlers."

Needless to say, I called Bob Metz and said yes to the invitation. It turned out to be one of the best interview experiences yet. You can read more about the day here or listen to the actual episode here. Dreams and ambitions have a divine quality that forces us outside of our comfort zones.

John C. A. Manley is the author of Much Ado About Corona: A Dystopian Love Story, the forthcoming All The Humans Are Sleeping and other works of speculative fiction. Get free samples of his stories by becoming a Blazing Pine Cone email subscriber at: https://blazingpinecone.com/subscribe/