Lions...Tigers...Bears...Oh My.

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I am reminded of the wonderful movie, The Wizard of Oz, as I approach the publishing of my first EBook, Patron Principles.  Not that my story line has anything to do with wicked witches, flying monkeys or ruby red slippers.  No, my book is about hospitality customer service.  Nothing nearly as exciting as Dorothy and the Wizard.  Even today, when I watch The Wizard of Oz, I generally change the channel when the Wicked Witch appears on the screen as the school teacher riding the bicycle.  Her transformation from school teacher to Wicked Witch is scary.    

For whatever reason, that is one of the scariest scenes I have ever experienced in film.  I am uncomfortable watching that scene.  I am feeling the same uneasiness as I approach the publishing of Patron Principles.  I'm not sure why I feel that way but I keep thinking that maybe I can change the channel and my fear will all go away.  My anxiety about publishing this book parallels a lifetime of wanting to do just that.  Write and publish.  So many times in this life of mine, I chose not to take the risk of writing and sharing my words with others. 

Now, only days away from the big day, I am confident in the end that it will be anti-climatic.  Still, leading up to the actual day of publishing, I am feeling anxious about it.  Not anxious for it to happen but anxious about it happening.  I know that makes little sense but I have rewritten the damn thing twenty times, proofed it another twenty times and each time I do, I change one more thing.  I am in my last edit of the book and into my second red pen.  I fear I have been more critical than my college English professors who used to take joy in marking up my papers. 

In spite of all my prudent checking and proofing, I am sure that someone, somewhere will take their red pen to my work and forward a copy to me showing all my glaring oversights and mistakes.  Then on top of that, I am sure that criticism will follow of my content in that it provides little resource and interest for the reader.  One could say that I am suffering from self-doubt and great insecurity for this first effort. 

The bright side is clearly if someone takes the time to mark it up or criticize, that means that they purchased it and actually bothered to read it.  That's a good thing and in the end, I will gladly accept the criticism and corrections recognizing that at least someone read my work. 

Patron Principles is more of a manual, newsletter or helpful how-to-do-it hospitality customer service book.  Not a great piece of literature for sure.  However, it is meaningful for the writer as it conveys what knowledge and understanding he has of his industry and how to be successful within it.  If only one hospitality worker somewhere in some small rural community with one hotel reads it and provides exemplary customer service, I will have achieved something positive. 

My hope is that the experience will be a positive one and will lead to many more experiences of sharing my words and stories.  Fictional story-telling is on-deck and this writer is hopeful that my first experience with Lions...Tigers...and Bears...will not be my last.