Vickie Fee

Guest Post: Cindy Goyette

We’re tickled to have fab author Cindy Goyette as our guest Chick today. Cindy admits that she still gets a bit nervous at book readings and podcasts. (As a side note, she also gets nervous around chickens). But, I’m sure that doesn’t extend to Chicks! Take it away, Cindy!

But Did You Die?

Fun fact. I’m afraid of chickens. No, a wayward chicken didn’t nearly peck me to death when I was a child. In fact, I don’t know of a single case of death by poultry. Still, I turn clammy at the sight of one. My husband can vouch for that as one time a nearly featherless rooster ran in front of our car like it had just escaped feeding time at Jurassic Park. I was so startled; I thought I might lay an egg.

Some fears are irrational. But the fear of putting yourself out there as a writer? I think that’s valid. When I first started writing, I was twelve years old. The only person to read my stuff was my bestie, also twelve. She wasn’t about to criticize me because she was writing, too, and neither of us knew what we were doing.

It wasn’t until I was in my thirties that I joined a writer’s critique group. I’ll never forget that first night when we got together to review the first chapter of a novel I’d just started. It wasn’t my first book; I had a closet novel I’d finished a few years before. But on that night, the leader of the group was shaking; she was so worried about my reaction to her criticism. Or maybe it was because she couldn’t even see the words I’d typed through the millions of red marks she’d made on the page. But guess what? We both survived. She’s not in my life anymore—no, I didn’t kill her, not even in one of my books. I credit her with teaching me a lot about accepting feedback and not giving up because I didn’t get it right the first time.

At a book signing with a friend

In the following years, thinking I was ready to publish traditionally, rejections came from agents and publishers, too many to count. It would have been so easy to give up.

I thought I’d throw up when the first page of my unpublished novel was read before an audience at a writer’s conference several years back. But when they liked it, I was encouraged to seek publication once again. Eventually, it led to my first published novel. I still get the jitters and stumble over my own words when doing readings at book events. Podcasts? Get me a tranquilizer.

Will it ever get easier? I hope so. But I think the fear of rejection will always be there. And I think that’s a good thing. It motivates us to improve. It fuels creativity and forces you to do your best work. And when it’s over, and it’s gone well, which is usually the case, there is no greater high than sharing your work and getting feedback.

Bio:

Armed with a handgun and a word processor, Immigration Officer Cindy Goyette spent her nights creating fictional friends to help pass the lonely hours between border crossers. A portable black-and-white TV cancelled the unexplained noises coming from the ancient jail cells in the creepy basement. The resulting book will stay in the closet where it belongs, but the seed was planted and she’s been writing ever since.

Cindy spent the ensuing years as a probation officer, dealing with hardened criminals with hard-luck stories that sometimes kept her up at night. Every day was an adventure. She survived by seeing humor in situations where she could find it. She joked about writing a book and then she did just that. Born in New Jersey, Cindy lived in Phoenix for twenty years. She now makes her home in Washington state with her husband and two cocker spaniels.

Please share in the comments any situations that make you a little nervous.

33 thoughts on “Guest Post: Cindy Goyette”

  1. Interesting background, Cindy, and one that fills you with so many authentic emotions to share with readers. When we realize that the definition of faith and fear are the same, it makes overcoming the challenges of public appearances doable. For example, fear is the belief that the unseen will come to pass. Likewise, faith is the belief that the unseen will come to pass. Humor helps!

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  3. Love your article! And thanks for including me in a picture 😃 That was a fun day.

    Mary

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  7. Great points, Cindy — putting yourself out there can be scary, but it’s so, so worth it.

    The thing that makes my legs go wobbly is heights. My brain convinces me not that I *could* fall off of the edge of any elevated surface, but that I *will* fall off. The fear is completely irrational, but try telling my nervous system that!

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  8. Thanks for being here, Cindy! Hurrah on your book!

    I love chickens…but I’ve never seen a featherless rooster before. And I’m curious: What happened to your writing bestie? Did she, too, eventually publish?

    I don’t stumble when reading, but I do think the audiobook narrator does it way better. In terms of fears, I’m still not the fondest of heights, especially those thrill rides that drop you straight down.

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  9. I have a fear of spiders, even mild-mannered Daddy Long-Legs (which I gather aren’t even really spiders, but look enough like them to count).

    Luckily, I’m pretty good with people, and don’t have a fear of public speaking–as long as I’m allowed to use notes!

    Thanks so much for visiting the Chicks today–your book looks fab!

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      1. From the internet: “Daddy longlegs, also known as harvestmen, are not spiders; they are a distinct group of arachnids in the order Opiliones, more closely related to scorpions than true spiders. Unlike spiders, harvestmen have a fused body that looks like a single oval, lack venom and fangs, and cannot produce silk or spin webs. They have two eyes on a small turret, eat various organic matter, and can shed a leg to escape predators.”

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  10. My sister, an attorney isn’t afraid of much. But, like you, she does have poultry discomfort. When she was four she got chased out of an outhouse by a turkey she didn’t realize was in there with her until she stood up!

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  11. Cindy, you are not alone! I had to give a brief pitch of my book at the Anthony nominee ceremony and my hands were shaking when I got off the stage. And I’ve got years of theatre and improv performances in my background!

    I love your covers. And congrats on becoming a grandmama!

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  12. Cindy, thanks so much for visiting us Chicks today! (We’re not scary, we promise. Well, not really scary.) DIAMOND IN THE RUFF looks adorable–and what a cute title! I’m nervous about just about everything: snakes, ticks, wasp nests, plane turbulence, lightning, making speeches, tornados, driving through storms, being alone in the woods. The list is endless, ha.

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  13. Your response is absolutely understandable. As is the leader of the group’s response. Glad you were able to get past that and get published.

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