Letter from Sammy
Hi Todd,
Just dropping you a line to let you know that while it might not mean much, you’ve got another McCaffrey fan who would be rather delighted if, sometime in the future, you wrote a novel based on the concept of the Nathi Wars prior to Dragonsdawn and all that followed. I’ve always been rather intrigued by it, and having a particular fondness for characters like Emily Boll and Paul Benden, would love to see more of them, whether the ending of the wars is dark or not.
Also, I have to ask, as I’m in a bit of a rut right now at my current age and after seeing you cop negative criticism and attitudes quite a few times, I have to ask…how do you handle that?
Thanks for reading my letter,
Sammy
Hi Sammy,
Thanks for the vote on the Nathi Wars. I’ll take it under advisement.
I edited your age info out because of my (perhaps strange) idea that ages and other private information shouldn’t be made available on my website.
The current economic climate makes getting out of a rut quite difficult for everyone. Also, ruts are really (I hate to say it) age-independent — they happen pretty much at every age.
How do I handle the negative? Sometimes not well, actually. When I do it well, it’s because I remember the old saying: “Judge not, lest ye be judged.” For the longest while, it sounded stupid but then I got it.
I don’t know what a person’s life has been like, I can only see them for brief glimpses and even then, I’m viewing them through the lenses of my own experience. So, really, I can’t judge another person. And, once I figured that out, I began to realize that the only standard that’s of any importance to me is the standard I’ve set for myself — am I doing what matters to me? Do I feel that I’ve done enough or written well enough?
In the case of Pern, that goes on to include: Do I feel that I’m keeping true to the spirit of the world? For me, that “spirit” involves going to new places, new situations, and expanding horizons.
I’m also blessed with my mother’s emphatic endorsement, “I trust you implicitly!”
And, finally, it’s good to have fans that are so protective of the world of Pern that they’re willing to criticize me. As I’ve said before, a book is a collaborative effort between the writer and the reader — the writer creates but the reader re-creates and, in that act of re-creation, the reader brings to bear his or her own unique viewpoints and ways of seeing things. No one ever reads the exact same book.
So, while I’m only human and prefer hearing praise to criticism, I remind myself that I’m lucky enough to have people who care strongly enough that they’ll take the time to share their opinions.
Cheers,
Todd