The printers called...

Anna finished writing her book about a couple of weeks ago. Little did she know that she was in for a surprise. When she started writing it was supposed to be a diary entry as she normally wrote daily in her diary about events in her life.

After finishing college there was not much that she could do. She wanted a job and could not find any job that would pay her for permanent employment. She soon decided to work for an employment agency. Writing came easy to her. One day on a whim, she sat down and started to write, and she ended up writing a novel, unexpectedly.

Her friends marveled at her talent and worried that if she became famous she will become an untouchable. The type of talent that becomes unbearable.

She was dating a local journalist and of course, she would cry paparazzi if he did not pay attention to her. Not only that, she in her mind saw dollar signs and limos. As much as she enjoyed the experience of writing, she felt that it was not enough to be happy about her finished product. She wanted to have something to show for her efforts, despite the fact that it was an accidental discovery that she could sit for that long and write for as long as she did.

Her friends met her for drinks at a nearby bar to celebrate her last ink on her laptop. They were loud and unruly. Thank God it was at noon and not that many people were present in the bar. She kept explaining to her friends how she felt despondent not having her characters to support her in her daily life anymore. The characters in her book had become her person.

That minus the sense of boredom and lack of accomplishment which challenged all of them, singularly slowed their enthusiasm. She at least was one step ahead of her friends. She had something to show for her life after college. Going to work was no longer a drudgery for her and her meager salary no longer affected her self worth as it once did. Her friends felt some sort of envy seeing her come to her own and become the person that she was meant to be.

Without a publisher, she was still about to learn the ways of marketing her book and having her book on shelves of bookstores. Her friends did not know how to help her. Should she call the Today Show and ask for an appearance to talk about her book? That was not going to happen just like that. She called the network anyway and hoped for luck. She later received an email briefly stating that the Today Show had a lot of new writers waiting to be discovered. Writers who were like her, with books and the desire to be interviewed on the show. She had to wait in line like all others. She and her friends took that to mean that Anna's book was worth some consideration. It was good news for her.

Her friends did not even know what her book was about. For all, they knew, it could have been about them. It could have been unflattering, a tell-all book which denounced them. In blind faith, her friends saw her zeal, and like supportive friends that they were, they were the first to support her. Next, Anna wanted desperately to be taken seriously as a writer. She then started a podcast hoping that she will have a following. When that did not pen out she was discouraged. It did not take long for her to realize that she was an unknown entity and needed some exposure or maybe another book would make her legitimate.

Not only that she had to attend seminars that were meant to help build her confidence. Her boyfriend started to feel like she was in a competition with him. He would be irritable when she doubted herself. "What makes you think that your book will not be bought by readers? If it is good, it will sell. You just need to be discovered, and no, I will not write an article about you in our newspaper in order to give you name recognition." that sounded and felt mean to Anna. Her friends believed that she secretly hoped that he might help her. It would have been her dream come true but the reality was that people have flaws and so did her boyfriend. He did not feel or want to be supportive enough to risk his career for her. Point well taken, maybe not so much.

Her friends tried to reason with her by asking her how she would feel if she was in her boyfriend's shoes. Would she bet her career for his first try at something that he did not have formal training for? She could see her friend's point of view, but the inner child in her did not. She took it as spite on his part. It became very clear that the book that Anna wrote was to reveal a lot about her friends, about her and those who were close to her.

When a publisher who was told by a friend of a friend about Anna's book called Anna, her friends were, not to be forward, more than excited and happy for Anna. The deal was signed and Anna became an official writer with a publisher. It was going to be a waiting game until there was a hit. A hit in Anna's case was any purchase that was not made by a friend or a relative of hers. A stranger who would be drawn to her book whether by the cover or by the excerpt or the description of the book, was what they all considered to be a desirable reader. Anna waited. No hits.

Her job became her source of strength. She did not have to complain. At least she had a job. She also had friends and relatives who supported her.

"There is a publisher on the phone for you Anna." her boyfriend said to her on a Saturday morning. The publisher told her that her book was finally on the shelves of bookstores. Someone wanted to review it if she consented. The ball was rolling and there was no looking back.

It should have been a day for Anna when she heard that her book was in bookstores but it also was her friend's and family's news. She walked to a nearby bookstore after checking if they carried her book and they did. There nestled in many book covers was on the spine of one of the books in bold print, an author's name: Anna Lutuli.