Well, *I* Feel Like An Idiot

There’s really no way to put this that doesn’t sound embarrass me to no small end, so I’ll just type it: Instead of coming out on November 8, All Fall Down will be published on January 10,  2012.

So yeah.

I’m not sure if this was always the case, and a few people (myself included and the good folks at Amazon) heard about the November pub date wrong? Or if it just got shifted for a bureaucratic reason beyond my comprehension.

It clearly doesn’t matter, if the end result is the same. There are– to my perspective– at least two upsides to this situation.

1. We now have two additional months to talk up the book, schedule signings, interviews, and so forth.
2. All Fall Down is about people dealing with upsetting situations (in their case, a dramatic loss) and the feelings that rise up in response, and this is a doozy of an opportunity to talk about Anger.

I’m angry that the comic I spent five years developing still won’t be out for another two months. I’m not blaming anyone or anything like that. I have no idea how this stuff works, or why it works the way it does.  This is my first published comic, after all.

I do know that this process is– at this point– completely beyond my control, and getting angrier about that would be a total waste of time and energy. That being said… I’m still ticked off.

The trick I learned through NO small amount of anguish is to not fight it. Let it flow. I’m not endorsing the Dark Side here, but gripping and resisting feelings will only make them last longer. That can really screw you up in the long run.

Okay, so how do you let anger out in a healthy way? I shout. I’m at home alone right now, which is fortunate cause believe me I was pretty damned cross. So yeah. The walls shook a bit. Just let it go.

After the initial outburst, I sat and thought about it as the heat in my brain– actual heat– began to cool. It’s okay.  The book’s still coming out. Just… not… yet.

Damn it.